By Blood
by avenger1748
Summary: Three years he lived without her and now she was back, but everyone had enemies and times were tough, there was no way to go back to where they were, or was there? ForrestxOC
1. Chapter 1

Forrest never thought he'd see her again. When she left the County three years ago he was sure she would never come back. Those were her words after all.

The barn was full of people, full of music, a crowd of people ready to buy from the Bondurants. Howard and Jack moved off to the side with a crate of moonshine, ready to serve their eager customers. But Forrest stood off to the side as usual to keep an eye on the crowd, and that's when he saw her.

With a hat covering most of her face, he was surprised he noticed who she was. But Forrest would never forget that face or her long blonde hair. It was longer than he remembered, she was thinner than he remembered, she looked much more run down than he remembered. She didn't wear a dress and dance with the other men and women, she just stood to the side leaning against the wooden beams and smoking a cigarette.

Forrest then felt someone by his side, his younger brother Jack.

"Hey Forrest…is that…"

"You best go help Howard now Jack," Forrest warned, his eyes still on the crowd as he smoked his cigar.

Jack said nothing more and moved back to his oldest brother, watching carefully as Forrest's gaze returned to the woman.

"Howard," Jack began in a lower voice, although Forrest wouldn't hear him over the music, he was still skeptical. "That Evie Henry over there?"

Howard's eyes followed Jack's gesture.

"Well I'll be damned," he scoffed.

* * *

 _*15 years earlier*_

 _Evie held her hands in her pocket as she walked down the dirt road, whistling to herself as she looked behind at her farm house. Her father didn't like when she hung around with the Bondurant boys even though he and their father were good friends. Apparently teenage girls with teenage boys was always bad news._

 _When she was clear of the road, Evie started running down into the paddock, dodging trees and bushes expertly. She took the same route three times a week, hurrying to make it to the small shack in the woods._

 _"Why ain't I surprised you started without me again," Evie sighed as she walked inside._

 _The shack only had three walls, the other was bare and gave a somewhat pleasant view of the river._

 _Forrest was sitting with his back against the wall sipping of a jar of clear liquid, taking a deep breath after swallowing._

 _"You always late," he looked up at her._

 _"I gotta stage an escape from my property, you don't," she reminded, sitting beside him and grabbing the bottle._

 _"I bring the liquor," he reasoned._

 _"Your damn lucky you do," she chuckled before taking a swig. "Whoa,"_

 _"Yeah, fresh bottle," Forrest laughed, taking it back._

 _"How have you still got a liver?" she asked, coughing slightly._

 _"I'm a Bondurant,"_

 _Evie rolled her eyes and mimicked his words._

 _"Yeah well I'm a Henry and I ain't dead yet either, you just as indestructible as me,"_

 _Forrest turned to her and smiled._

 _"I suppose you're right,"_

* * *

Forrest wanted to know what she was doing back here. The farmhouse where she lived went up in flames three years ago, her father was dead, her brother was off at war. There was nothing here for her anymore.

Evie dropped her cigarette to the floor, stepping over it as she walked toward the side exit, her body swaying from side to side. Forrest bit down on his lip as he watched her leave, knowing she was intending to drive herself somewhere.

It wasn't any of his business, he had no right chasing her outside and telling her what she should or shouldn't be doing, but he couldn't help himself. Before he knew it he was stepping outside as well, following the dark figure up to a car.

"Seems like you're forgettin' what moonshine does to you," Forrest spoke as he walked closer, catching her before she opened her door.

Evie turned around, a smile creeping onto her face as she saw who was walking toward her. She knew the voice before she saw the face, she could never forget him.

"Forrest Bondurant," she folded her arms, leaning back onto her car. "Ain't you a sight,"

Forrest cleared his throat uncomfortably, slipping his hands into his pocket. Evie noticed how much bulkier he was now than she remembered, how deeper his voice was, how much meaner he seemed. Maybe those rumors she had heard around the place were true.

"How you been?" Forrest asked, not really knowing what else to say as he looked around.

"Still kicking," she chuckled, thinking back to how he would always let his eyes roam whenever he was nervous. "And you?"

"Oh I'm alright," he nodded.

"Still out the station?" she asked, knowing the answer before he nodded. "Well, you did tell me you weren't leaving,"

"Yeah, just about the same time you told me you weren't coming back," he reminded.

Evie's smile slowly disappeared from her face as she stared back at him. She didn't like thinking back to that evening she left.

* * *

 _"You could come," she told him as they stood at the front steps of the station._

 _Evie's bag was by her feet, she had made up her mind._

 _"You don't even know where you're goin'," Forrest shook his head._

 _"I know I can't stay here,"_

 _"You can stay here," he assured. "This is your home too,"_

 _"Forrest…everywhere I look I see flames and I can hear them…" she shook her head. "I can't be here anymore,"_

 _Forrest put his hands in his pocket, looking at her with a serious gaze._

 _"So you just gonna up and leave?"_

 _"I don't have many options,"_

 _"You…and me," he began, but Forrest could never talk about that sort of thing so freely._

 _"You know how I feel Forrest, that ain't ever gonna change," she reminded. "And I want us…I want things here, I do…but I have to go,"_

* * *

"Yeah," she hung her head low for a moment before returning to his gaze. "Well some of us ain't that great at keeping our word,"

Forrest noticed the change in her voice, the way she looked away from him as if she was ashamed of herself. She had told him she was never coming back, but here they were.

"What brought you back?" he asked, cutting straight to the point.

Evie shook her head.

"Can't a girl visit her hometown?"

"You don't look like you're visiting,"

Evie followed Forrest's gaze to the back of her car which had a bag fully packed, shoes and blankets piled next to it.

"And what does it look like I'm doing?" she asked.

Forrest looked back at her, his eyes staring right into hers.

"Running,"

Evie glared at him for a moment before reaching into her pocket and lighting a cigarette.

"Is that right?" she mumbled, blowing smoke into the night sky. "Ain't you insightful these days,"

Forrest heard the annoyance in her voice, knowing he was right.

"What you got yourself into?"

"What, you trying to save the day Forrest?" she asked, folding her arms once again and dangling the cigarette between her lips.

"You come back here with your bags packed and head straight for the liquor," he told her, his voice loud.

"Was I supposed to drop by the station, is that it? I should of come found you and told you straight away what my business was here as if I don't have any right coming back?"

This wasn't how either of them wanted to meet again after all the years, but there was a lot left unsaid between the two of them and the tension was high. There was silence between them for a while as they stared at one another, their silence speaking volumes.

"You just took off," Forrest shook his head, looking away once again as he spoke, his voice quiet but still holding anger. "I didn't know where you were or if you was even alive. Three years of that. Then you show up like this,"

Evie lowered her gaze as she took another drag of her cigarette, not wanting to look up and into his eyes. She knew she had hurt him when she left, it had haunted her the whole time she was gone, but hearing Forrest say it was painful.

''Forrest…'' she whispered, looking up at him apologetically. ''You don't have to remind me how stupid it was,''

Forrest shook his head, his hands burrowing deeper into his pockets.

''Where'd you even end up? Where you been for three years, huh?''

''Lost track,'' she shrugged. ''Turns out I'm no good at starting over,''

There was a brief silence as Forrest considered where she had been all this time. If she hadn't settled down somewhere, what had she been doing? Three years was a long time to not have a home, to not have a life.

''So you thought you'd come back and continue where you left off?''

Evie chuckled and blew out of a cloud of smoke toward the night sky, shaking her head at his words.

''Fuck you Forrest,''

Throwing her cigarette down on the ground, Evie turned and opened her door, sliding into her seat before realizing something was stopping her door from closing. Forrest had a hold of the door frame, holding it where it was so she couldn't slam it shut.

''Why you actin' like an idiot?'' he asked.

''Let go of the damn door,'' Evie snarled.

''You ain't driving,''

''What do you care?''

Forrest was silent as Evie ripped the door from his grasp and started the engine, taking off and leaving him standing in darkness watching her speed off down the road. He didn't know why he let her go, but something made him think that maybe she wasn't the girl he remembered. Three years was a long time, they had both changed.

But it wasn't until her headlights left his sight that he realized how stupid he was letting her go again.

* * *

Neither Howard or Jack mentioned Evie when they made their way back to the station. Forrest had gone back into the barn just before they finished selling the crate of moonshine and decided to take off, and both brothers knew where he had been.

They had learnt thought over the years that bringing up Evelyn Henry always resulted in Forrest getting angry and it usually lasted days. They hadn't mentioned her in over a year now and now they didn't know what to say.

Forrest was silent on the way back but that was hardly unusual. They were listening to the radio as they made their way further down the road, a car coming into their view on the side of the road just before the entrance to the station. Forrest clenched his fists in anger as he saw the vehicle, knowing exactly who it was.

''I'll take care of this,'' he mumbled as Jack slowed the car down.

''What are you doing?'' Howard asked, genuinely confused.

''Just get on back to the station now,'' Forrest ordered. ''Go on,''

Jack hesitated for a moment before driving toward the gate, leaving Forrest to inspect the vehicle.

Walking toward the door, Forrest could already see the blonde hair leaning against the steering wheel. Evie was hunched over, her mouth hanging open as she slept heavily.

Letting out a long sigh, Forrest mumbled under his breath as he pried the door open, gently pushing Evie over to the passenger side.

* * *

The next morning, Evie woke up in the spare bedroom at the Bondurant's station. Head aching, body sore, she pulled herself up enough to sit and put her head in her hands. She knew how she got here because she remembered where she was heading.

Evie was still in the same clothes, still in her boots. Her jacket was on the floor beside her.

She only intended to pull over for a few seconds to think to herself and now here she was. As if she needed another reason for Forrest to look down on her.

And there he was at the door, arms folded as he leaned against the frame and looked at her emotionless.

''I shouldn't be here,'' Evie pulled her hair over to one side out of her face. ''I should go,''

''Runnin' already,'' Forrest shook his head. ''Why I should be surprised but I just aint,''

''I get it,'' she groaned. ''Just give me my keys,''

''I ain't done,''

''Jesus Forrest, I know you hate me but keeping me around to remind me about my fuck up is a bit much,''

Forrest couldn't help feeling guilty when she thought he hated her.

''I wanna talk,''

''You?'' Evie raised her eyebrows. ''Talk?''

''I got questions,''

''Good for you,''

''I figured you'd owe me at least before you leave again,''

Evie folded her arms, watching as he stepped into the room and closed the door. There was a chair in the corner but before he moved to take a seat, Forrest glanced back at her, down at her shoulders and around her neck before speaking.

''Start with how you got those bruises,''


	2. Chapter 2

Evie had forgotten about the marks left on her skin, realizing that without her jacket they were clearly visible. She immediately began pulling the sheet up to cover herself, but it was useless now.

Forrest took sat down on the stool in the corner and watched her stare back at him with nothing to say.

''Who did that?'' he asked, his gaze serious.

''We all piss someone off eventually,'' she shrugged.

''Looks to me you got in with some bad people,'' he sighed. ''That's why you're back here, isn't it?''

Evie rolled her eyes and folded her arms angrily.

''You must really hate me,''

Forrest's eyes widened in frustration.

''I dragged your ass in here from the side of the road,'' he pointed out in a louder voice.

''Then why are you so pissed off that I'm back here?'' she asked, Forrest growing silent as he stared back at her. ''I know I left, I know I screwed up, but this place is my home too and-''

''You got nothin' left here, you said it yourself,'' Forrest interrupted, his voice rough and angry. ''When you took off, you took off on _me_ and you show up and you don't...you don't give a damn,''

Evie took a moment to process his words before she began shaking her head in disbelief. Forrest noticed her eyes filling with tears but he didn't say a word.

''I wish I could say I didn't,'' she spoke softly. ''Sure would have made the past few years easier,''

Forrest kept his voice low when he responded, toning down his anger.

''Then why...'' he trailed off.

''I didn't know how,'' she shrugged, knowing his question. ''Every day I got further away, all I wanted to do was come here, come home, but...things got complicated. I got here yesterday afternoon and I wanted to drive down this road but...I was scared,''

Forrest swallowed, glancing out the bright window for a moment before turning back to Evie's gaze.

''Well a few swigs of moonshine and you almost made it,''

Evie smiled in return, appreciating the fact his teasing hadn't completely gone away. It was funny how they could go from arguing to just talking, but they were far from understanding one another like they once did.

''You gonna tell me what happened?'' Forrest asked, careful not to stray too far from the point of this conversation.

''I doubt you'll like what you'll hear,'' Evie sighed.

''That don't matter,''

Evie thought for a moment before pushing herself out of the bed, reaching for her coat.

''I got a few things I gotta take care of before that,'' she told him as she stood. ''But late this afternoon, I'll explain,''

''Where you goin'?'' he asked curiously.

''You'll know where to find me,''

* * *

Walking out to her truck wasn't the quiet journey she had planned on. Howard and Jack were sitting downstairs by the bar eating and Evie had no choice but to walk right by them.

''Evie!'' Jack smiled.

''How are you Jack?'' she asked politely. ''Taller than I remember,''

''Well I'm not a kid no more,'' he assured.

''I can see that. What a difference three years make,''

Evie was hoping on conversing with Jack a few moments and then being on her way, but she knew better than to think she could stand a few feet from Howard without a comment from his drunken self.

''You know, I'm part of the business now,'' Jack continued, happy to tell her about his accomplishments.

She remembered the youngest Bondurant always being so hell bent on working with his brothers in the family business of moonshine distribution. He was always getting picked on by the brothers, always one step behind.

''Jack, why don't you shut up and let Evelyn here piss off for another few years,'' Howard turned in his seat, a smirk on his lips.

''You look terrible Howard,'' Evie folded her arms. ''At least there's one thing that'll never change,''

Howard laughed to himself and turned back to his plate. Before he could get out another taunt, Jack started talking once again. Evie was only a few feet from the door and even though she didn't mind Jack's chatter, she knew she had to head off.

''It's been nice to see you Jack,'' Evie told him sincerely with a smile as she reached for the doorknob.

''Yeah, you too. Are you uh...taking off?'' he asked.

There was a creak in the floorboards as Forrest walked down the stairs, his glance immediately going toward the door where Evie and his brother stood. It was obvious he had heard Jack's question and was keeping his distance, listening for her reply.

''No, I'll be around,''

Then she walked out, headed straight for her truck. It wasn't as if it was the worst welcome, it was much better than the one she was expecting, but there was still a lot of tension and unanswered questions. Not so much with Jack and Howard who hadn't asked where she had been for the past three years because they knew the only person who deserved an answer to all those questions was Forrest.

* * *

When Evie told him that he would know where to find her, Forrest only had one place in mind. Although the Henry's property was still there and technically still in Evie and her brother's name, there was nothing there but a half standing old shed.

Forrest hadn't been to the small shack in the woods for years, probably a few months before Evie had left town. Everything was messier, trees had fallen down and vines had grown over the small and narrow road. But Forrest soon found it and was relieved to see Evie's truck parked behind the bushes.

The sun was setting fast and Forrest could see a whole stack of old wood outside the door to the shack as he stepped out of his truck. Then he noticed Evie walking out peering over at his truck, lowering the gun in her hand.

''Look who's here last for a change,'' she told him with a slight chuckle as she slipped the gun into her back pocket.

''This where you living now?'' he asked, his voice muffled by his cigar.

''I like it here,'' she nodded. ''So you got your list of questions?''

Soon enough the sun was down and the pile of wood Evie had gathered turned into a small, warm fire for them to sit beside. Evie placed a blanket on the ground for them and even though Forrest wasn't normally comfortable being so close to someone, this is what he and Evie used to do. It took him back to being a fifteen year old boy, but a lot had changed since those times.

Evie sat a bottle of whiskey between them as she kicked off her boots. Her long blonde hair was braided to one side to keep out of her face as she turned to Forrest, waiting for him to begin the interrogation she had been expecting for years.

''Um...'' Forrest began, not knowing where to begin.

It wasn't a secret that Forrest was a quiet man, but he used to share almost everything with Evie, and he still wasn't great with words. Evie was used to waiting for him to find the right way to say something.

''I went to Chicago,'' Evie spoke, taking it upon herself. ''I'd heard people talk about how lively it was there, how big and bustling it was. I got a job at one of the restaurants, stayed for two months and left for somewhere else. That's basically how I went on for the first year and a half,''

''And the other half?''

''Like you said, I got in with the wrong people,'' she hung her head low. ''I had gone to dozens of cities and went back to Chicago to get my job back and get myself together, figure out what the hell I was doing, but soon enough some people got me into the underground business there,''

Forrest's expression turned much more hardened and concerned as she spoke.

''What kind of business?'

''Drugs, moonshine, anything that was illegal, they were pushing it out through the restaurant and making triple the amount of anyone else,'' she explained. ''I followed through for a while but it got...well, I wanted out. But they weren't too happy,''

''Who?''

''Whoever I was working for,'' she shrugged. ''Never met 'em personally,''

''And they did that to you?'' Forrest asked, pointing at her neck.

Evie nodded and rubbed her shoulder where the bruises were, reaching down for the whiskey and taking a big gulp. Forrest watched as her hands shook, her mind going back to whatever she experienced in Chicago. Forrest felt the urge to hurt whoever did this to her, to make they pay for laying a finger on Evie, but he knew she would never tell him who it was.

''That's why you came back here,''

''No, I came back because I saw my chance to,'' she shook her head. ''But when I got here last night, I got that feeling again, like I shouldn't be here,''

Forrest took a swig of the whiskey as well, holding the bottle in his hand as he looked toward the crackling fire.

''This is your home Evie,''

''It used to be,'' she sighed, reaching over to grab the bottle. ''I feel like a stranger now,''

''A lot happens in three years,'' Forrest nodded.

There was a long pause between them where they sat in silence passing the whiskey. It reminded them both of being young teenagers out here at the old shack, it was the closest thing to home that Evie had felt in a long time. Something told her she only got that feeling from being around Forrest.

''I'm sorry I took off,'' she told him quietly. ''I know I could have had a good life here. With you.''

Forrest cleared his throat, noticing that Evie had moved closer to him. Three years without her and now she was right here, so close, and it still didn't feel real yet. When he saw her last night he noticed so many changes in her, but now in the glowing light of the fire, he saw that so much has still remained the same. Her voice, her hair, her mannerisms and the way she breathed in through her teeth after she swallowed straight liquor. All those things that he remembered about her were still there.

* * *

 _Forrest watched on in amusement as Evie took a large mouthful of moonshine and swallowed painfully. The noise that escaped her mouth made it even more entertaining and she clamped her teeth shut and took a deep breath. With an unsteady hand, Evie handed the jar back to Forrest and saw he was quietly laughing at her._

 _''Stop laughing at me,'' she whined, a smile creeping onto her lips._

 _They were sitting on the floor of the shack in the woods, escaping the harsh sun outside. It had been Evie's father's birthday and there was a gathering at her family farm, almost the whole town crowded in the large barn up the road. The Bondurant's were there too, but Forrest and Evie had managed to escape and run down to their usual hideout._

 _Forrest was wearing his usual attire apart from his boots he had kicked off by the end of the blanket they were laying on and Evie had on her pale pink dress that her mother insisted she wear for the occasion. Evie wasn't against dresses, she quite enjoyed some of the colors she had, but they weren't much use in her daily life considering she spent most of her time on the farm instead of in the house. She wasn't exactly the daughter her mother had hoped for._

 _''You ain't gettin' any better at that,'' Forrest chuckled._

 _''It burns,'' she groaned. ''Don't tell me you're immune to it,''_

 _''I don't put on a show like that though,'' he continued his laughter._

 _Evie frowned and stood up from her position, tripping on her feet for a moment and earning another laugh from Forrest. Evie herself couldn't help giggling at that as she grabbed the jar from his hands once again._

 _''Okay then,'' she challenged herself._

 _With one hand on her hip, Evie tilted the jar back on her lips and took another mouthful of the strong alcohol and swallowed immediately. With her eyes closed and a slight scrunch in her nose, Evie took a moment before opening her mouth and flashing a proud smile._

 _Forrest grinned back at her, admiring her completely. Her dress was flowing around her knees and her hair fell over her shoulders perfectly. She was beautiful, but Forrest never knew how to tell her that. He didn't know how to explain much to her when it came to feelings, but luckily she never had a problem with it._

 _''I like this dress,'' she told him, holding the bottom corner and spinning around, careful not to spill the moonshine in her other hand._

 _''Its...it's nice,'' Forrest nodded._

 _Evie smiled toward him, thinking it was adorable the way his cheeks burned a slight blush. Then she took a few steps closer and sat down right beside him, her eyes not leaving his the whole time. Forrest's gaze had followed hers and he watched as she sat down the jar of clear liquid and reached her hand up to cup his cheek. Then she pressed the softest kiss to his lips, feeling his hand snake around her waist._

* * *

Forrest noticed he was staring at Evie as she watched the fire and that she would have noticed, so he quickly changed his glance toward their surroundings. It was cold and dark out tonight. The thought of leaving her here and heading home didn't sit well with him.

''You shouldn't be stayin' out here on your own,'' he shook his head.

''I know how to use a gun Forrest,'' she yawned. ''I'll be fine,''

''What if those people find you?''

Evie looked up at him with a fearful expression before sighed and shaking her head.

''They got more important things on their mind, besides no one knows this thing is still standing,'' she explained.

Forrest nodded slowly in understanding, but he still didn't agree. He knew she was more than capable of taking care of herself, but he didn't feel right about leaving. Evie's eyes were slowly becoming heavier and Forrest made his mind up right there. He would stay while she fell asleep and he would stay until she woke.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks to everyone reading and those who have reviewed, I appreciate it so much!**

* * *

Forrest didn't know how he managed to get any sleep that night, but he did. When he woke up, laying on his back next to the fire, he immediately felt something missing. Evie had fallen asleep beside him after they talked a little while longer and Forrest had spent the rest of the night trying not to move as she used his side as a pillow.

It had been a long time since Forrest had watched her sleep like this. So peacefully, just the two of them, somewhere only they knew about. For three years Forrest felt anger every time he thought about Evie and the way she left, but when he glanced down at her, cheek pressed into his shirt and one hand resting slightly on his waist, there was no anger at all.

''You didn't need to stay with me,'' Evie told him, sitting down on a log to slip her boots on.

''Fell asleep,'' he told her in a hoarse morning voice as he sat up.

Forrest stifled a yawn as he watched Evie pull the bottom of her pants over the top of her boots and then begin to undo her braid. He was amazed at how long her hair was, a slight crinkle throughout it from the braid. Forrest didn't know how long it was going to take until he realized she was actually here and he wasn't just imagining it.

''Where you goin'?'' he asked.

''I gotta go grab supplies,'' she sighed. ''Can't live off a bottle of whiskey unfortunately. Well, not anymore it seems,''

Forrest looked down at the empty bottle beside him, realizing they happened to finish the whole thing the night before. Maybe that's how he managed to get a few hours sleep.

''Wait, you plannin' on living here?'' he asked, glancing between her and the run down shack. ''For how long?''

''Well...I got no plans to go anywhere,'' she shrugged.

Evie stared back at him as he processed her words. He knew she was sick of running, but it hadn't dawned on him that this would be the last stop on her journey, that she was back home for good.

Forrest always pictured that when Evie came back it would be with a husband, moving back onto the Henry family property and going about life as if she had never left Franklin County. He imagined a scenario that would hurt him more than her leaving.

''Um...so you're...'' he rambled, trying to form his question.

Evie smiled lightly, always enjoying the way he fumbled when things became even remotely personal.

''I'm not going anywhere,'' she assured him.

''How am I meant to believe that?'' he challenged.

Evie frowned as she looked up at him. Forrest was never going to believe that she was staying. Evie was unpredictable, she had already taken off once without warning and he didn't see her for years. Forrest wanted to protect himself from her, from being hurt again. Evie could understand his caution. If she was him, she would never trust her either.

''Forrest, I never expected to come back here and act like nothing happened and take off from where we were. I'd never ask you to forgive me like that or forget what I did. I made a mistake, a fucking big mistake, and I will deal with every consequence that comes with it. But I _can't_ deal with you hating me,'' she told him with a firm voice. ''I know I deserve it, but I can't stand it,''

Forrest stared back at her, his eyebrows drawn together in the middle as he listened carefully to her words.

''I don't hate you,'' he shook his head. ''I just don't know why you did it,''

''Why I left?'' she asked before he nodded. ''I left because I couldn't be here anymore. I lost my family, I lost my home, I hated this place to the point I didn't want to wake up and look at it anymore,''

''You had a home, you had me,''

''Forrest,'' she shook her head. ''I didn't do it to hurt you. You were the only reason I stayed for as long as I did, but I couldn't do it anymore. I didn't mean for it to be three years...I didn't mean for any of this to turn out the way it did,''

Before anything else could be said, Evie stood up and walked over to her truck. Everything she owned was in the passenger seat and although it wasn't the most comfortable living environment, but it would suit her fine for now.

Evie didn't know what else to say to Forrest, she couldn't keep reliving the time she left and everything that happened in between then and now. But she couldn't be here without him.

''I'm gonna get going,'' Forrest told her, appearing in front of her truck as he walked to his own.

''Uh, yeah,'' she nodded. ''I'll see you round,''

''Come by the station tonight,'' he suggested.

''I really can't deal with Howard today,''

Evie and Howard were like children, always snapping at one another and getting into petty arguments. It had been like that since they were young, the two of them just clashed, but since she had been gone and Howard had become a rather active alcoholic, it was bound to be a lot worse.

''No, it'll just...just me and you,''

Evie stared at him for a moment as a small smile broke out onto her lips.

''Okay,''

* * *

Evie pulled her hat down further to cover her face as she walked down the street, a bag full of groceries in her hand while her other swayed by her side. Not much had changed in this town, only a few stores no longer in operation, but there was no one too unfamiliar.

Maybe it was because she knew she had enemies somewhere looking for her, but every time she made eye contact with someone walking by, her heart began pounding a little faster in fear. It wasn't as if the people from Chicago were chasing her down, she was far from their first priority, but if they ran into her she had no doubt in her mind that they would make her pay for turning her back on them. Especially with everything she knew about their business.

''Evelyn?''

Evie's blood ran cold as she heard her name, her skin growing goosebumps. She didn't have her gun with her, a stupid mistake. She turned to see who she was dealing with and saw a skinny young man looking back at her with a hopeful smile, wondering if she was who he thought.

''Cricket?'' Evie smiled.

''Jack told me you was back but I was sure you'd be gone by now,''

Cricket didn't mean it as an insult as it would have been if it came from Howard's mouth. Evie walked toward him and put her free arm around him for a hug, happy that the first person to recognize her was someone she actually wanted to see. Over behind him she could see Jack unloading a truck full of crates.

''You in the business now too, huh?''

''Yeah, me and Jack gettin' a lot more responsibilities these days,'' he smiled. ''So what are you doin' back here?''

'Oh I just missed this place, missed the quiet life, thought it was about time to head back,''

''Everyone missed you,''

Evie looked at him and saw no hint of joking or anger, just sincerity. She couldn't imagine they had missed her too much, they would have been far too annoyed and betrayed for that at the beginning. But maybe over the years they may have. She sure missed them.

''Well I missed everyone around here too,''

''Forrest wasn't the same really after you left, not for a while there,'' he told her. ''He really missed you,''

Hearing that made her heart ache. Forrest always tried his best to hide any emotion he was feeling, but he must have been quite hurt for him to allow others to notice it.

''Maybe...don't tell him I said that,'' Cricket stuttered, thinking about what he had just shared.

''I won't,'' she smiled. ''I really missed him too,''

''I better get on back to Jack, maybe I'll see you again,''

''Yeah maybe, see you around Cricket,''

Watching as he walked away, Evie was grateful that Cricket wasn't mad at her for leaving. He didn't ask where she had been, he didn't ask why she left. But he had given her the slightest insight into what life was like here after she left. When Cricket said everyone missed her, she could see that maybe Jack and a few people in town would miss having her around to talk to, but she knew who he was really referring to.

* * *

It was late when Evie turned up at the station. Forrest was sipping a glass of whiskey when he heard her car driving in. For a while in the afternoon he thought she might not show up, maybe they were spending too much time together too soon, but there she was.

Forrest didn't want to forgive Evie for what she did so quickly, he wanted her to know what she put him through while she was gone, but it was hard not to want her company. Evie and Forrest were always inseparable, the thought of one another being somewhere on their own didn't sit well with either of them. It didn't matter what Evie had done, Forrest didn't like staying away from her.

Turning to the door, Forrest watched as Evie walked in, shivering from the cold and looking around the room until she laid eyes on him at the bar stool.

''Well, this takes me back,''

Forrest let himself chuckle slightly.

''Yeah well, we ain't fifteen no more,''

''Really? Because we finished a bottle of whiskey last night and passed out in front of a fire,'' she reminded playfully.

Forrest grinned again before he stood up and walked to the other side of the bar. There was a small oven beneath the stove and he reached down and carefully grabbed a plate of food, pushing it across the bar table to sit in front of Evie.

''Thought you could do with a warm meal,''

Evie looked at the offer and her eyes grew wide. She hadn't properly eaten anything in almost two days and now with food sitting in front of her, she realized just how hungry she was. Pulling out a stool to sit on, Evie immediately began stabbing at the potatoes on the plate with her fork. With one mouthful, Evie closed her eyes and savored the taste of real food.

''You cooked this?'' she asked, surprised.

''I cook,'' he assured, almost insulted.

''Not half bad,'' she chuckled. ''Edible very edible,''

They sat in silence for a while as Evie ate, Forrest pouring another glass of whiskey as he refilled his own. Evie hadn't expected so much normality in her visit, she thought there would be more questions for her, more stuff to work through. And that was coming, there was no escaping that, but for a while there everything was calm and just the way it used to be.

''Where's Jack and Howard?'' Evie asked as she finished dinner.

''They're out for the night on a job,''

''So business is booming, huh,''

''Seems that way,'' Forrest nodded, lighting a cigar.

Evie stood up and undid the buttons on her thick jacket, sliding it off her shoulders and slipping a cigarette between her lips. Forrest held out a match for her to use and watched her lean in, flicking his wrist a moment later to put the flame out.

As they both silently smoked, Evie's gaze was locked on Forrest. She wondered what happened after she left, what he did, what changed about him. Looking at him, there were only slight differences in the man she knew and the man he was now. He looked bigger, like he had gained muscle, which was probably likely given the amount of bruises and scars he had hidden beneath his clothes. Evie remembered seeing them, running her fingers along them and asking about each one.

Forrest turned and looked at her as she studied his arm, noticing new scars.

''What you doin'?'' he asked curiously.

Evie stood up and sat her cigarette down, taking a few short steps over toward him. She reached for his arm hesitantly and Forrest almost pulled away, but he had missed her touch. No one knew about his scars like she did, what he had been through, not even his brothers.

''You stitch this yourself?'' she asked, her eyes narrowly inspecting his old wound.

Forrest nodded. Whenever he was in a fight, Evie would always patch him up. He could do it himself, but it was never as precise and gentle as Evie's work. There was a lot that he ended up doing on his own when she left.

When he looked up at her, he could see that same concern and worry in her eyes that she held for him when she used to see him battered and covered in blood. She didn't like seeing him hurt, but Forrest always said he did what needed to be done.

''When are you gonna stop looking at me like that?'' she asked quietly, her attention moving from his arm to his eyes.

''Like what?''

''Like I'm gonna be gone soon,'' she sighed, running her hand up from his arm to his shoulder.

Forrest noticed her touches and watched her hand move, flickering his glance back to her a moment later.

''I'm not going anywhere,'' she assured, hand moving to the back of his head.

''Thing is, I've heard that before,''

That's when he noticed Evie was closer than he thought, her body pressing against his, leaving no room between them. Then the tension rose. They were jumping right back to where they were.

''I should go...'' she began, sensing things were moving too quickly.

Forrest shook his head, his hand reaching out to rest on the small of her back. When he looked back up, Evie leaned in and pressed her lips to his. Neither of them had felt each other's lips for years, everything just felt right. Forrest's arms wrapped around her waist tighter and Evie took that a sign she could run her fingers into his short, combed hair.

It didn't matter what they had to work through, what they had to discuss, because they missed each other too much to not do anything about it.


	4. Chapter 4

Later that night, Evie looked around the walls of Forrest's room as she laid with him, his arm around her as she leaned in against his bare chest. Not much had changed in here, a few more guns in the corners, but that was it. The mattress on the ground was never as uncomfortable as it looked, but Evie figured that was because she always shared it with Forrest.

Neither of them wanted or even know how to keep talking about what happened three years ago and what happened since. They had plenty of time for that. As for sleeping together, they had missed one another. Before Evie left, her and Forrest were in a rather normal, healthy relationship. Well, as normal as they could be. All those feelings were still there.

Evie turned and rolled closer to Forrest, letting out a content sigh before propping herself up by her elbow. There were so many marks on Forrest's chest from different occasions. Fights, accidents, all of which she was around for. Except there were new ones, as she expected, and she wondered what trouble he had gotten himself into to receive them.

''You're starting to get scars on top of scars,''

''You got your fair share too,'' he pointed out, turning to gesture toward her ribs.

''Well, when I piss someone off I do a damn good job,''

Forrest smiled lightly, the idea of someone coming after her still lingering in back of his mind and tainting the moment. He would ask her more about it, who it was that she angered and he would make sure they didn't get to her again. But not now, not when Evie was moving to rest her head on his chest, pressing a kiss to his lips first.

''Hmm, this was usually the time I sneaked my way out,''

''You want to go?'' he asked.

''No,'' she shook her head against him. ''Should I?''

Forrest sat up as Evie lifted her head, holding her close as she sat against his legs.

''You don't go leavin' anymore,'' he told her in a quiet voice.

Evie noticed the shift in his tone, it was serious and personal, one he never used around anyone else.

''Hear me?''

''I ain't goin' nowhere,'' she promised. ''Not again,''

* * *

At least Forrest was sitting by the bar when Evie woke up the next morning, quietly making her way downstairs. Howard was sitting not far from Forrest and if it wasn't for that fact, he would have had much to say. Instead he just shook his head with a smirk and went back to his breakfast.

Forrest hadn't moved his focus from the plate in front of him until Evie's boots came closer and closer to the table. Her hair was messier than usual and her shirt was buttoned unevenly, she looked like she was still half asleep. Forrest looked down at his plate and back at her, making an offer.

''Uh, no thanks,'' she shook her head. ''I might...I've got some stuff to do,''

Forrest walked her out onto the porch, looking over at her truck parked not too far from his. This was something he hadn't done in a while. Evie let out a long yawn as she looked up at the gloomy sky. Being here sure made the shack she was living in seem terribly small and lonely.

''Do you uh, need anything?'' Forrest asked.

He didn't like her being out there on her own.

''I'll be fine,'' she nodded.

Evie looked over at the door and then back at Forrest, wondering if they were supposed to be ignoring what happened the night before. Not that it wasn't obvious what happened, but maybe it wasn't meant to continue. But Evie tested her chances, reaching up and placing a light kiss on his lips.

Forrest looked back at her expressionless, as he usually did, and Evie just gave him a smirk in return.

''I'll see you 'round Forrest,''

* * *

Evie was chewing on a piece of fresh bread as she drove down the road leading to her turn off. The whole time she had noticed a car following far behind, but she was sure they were probably heading to the Bondurant's station. It looked like a rather new car, probably in town to buy some moonshine.

It soon became a distant worry as they drove past her, speeding down the road before Evie took her turn. The narrow road down to the shack was bumpy and worn down, something she would have to fix.

Hours later, just as the sun had gone down and Evie had started a nice warm fire, she heard an engine coming down the track. It was probably Forrest, but Evie still grabbed the shotgun she kept by the door and walked over to stand in front of her truck.

But it wasn't Forrest. It was the same car that had been following her down the road earlier. She gripped the gun tighter, her hand trembling. They were the people from Chicago, they had to be. No one else would have gone out of their way to follow her. She knew going into the town a second day in a row was risky.

''Evelyn, put the gun down,'' a man's voice called out calmly.

Evie remained silent, holding the gun tight and lifting it to point toward the figure walking over, but she soon realized she was outnumbered. Three men, all armed. She recognized the man speaking as Clive, but she didn't know the others. He was the one who got her into the business, not that she was given much of a choice.

''Gun, down,'' Clive ordered.

Evie reluctantly let her arm fall, lowering the gun until she dropped it to the ground. Now she had nothing and they had everything. Clive took it upon himself to look around the place, kicking at the unsteady walls of the shack and poking around at what was inside. The other two men just stared at her, guns in their hands, making sure she did nothing stupid.

''You left Chicago in a hurry,'' Clive walked back over to her, hands in his pocket.

''Wasn't much keeping me there,''

''You used to say that about this place,'' he reminded. ''And look where I find you,''

''I'm not going back, I'm done, I told you I was out,'' she told him angrily.

''I'm not here to bring you back,'' Clive chuckled. ''You're lucky to still be alive and walking,''

Evie swallowed, nerves on their edge and sensing the worst was about to come. If he wasn't here to bring Evie back to Chicago or pull her back into their business, there was only one other reason.

* * *

Opening her eyes, she was met with a white room, morning sun shining in through the window. The voices were coming from the corridor outside, it didn't take her long to realize she was laying in a hospital bed. Evie hated hospitals. The smell, the sound, everything about them. However when she tried to move, she then felt exactly why she was here.

''Wouldn't do that if I was you,'' a rough voice came from beside her.

Evie turned painfully to see Forrest sitting in a chair against the wall, watching her with concern, anger boiling throughout his whole body. He had turned up at the shack to find Evie passed out, blood all over her clothes and face, bruised and battered. It was a sight he would never be able to recover from and he had seen many horrific things in his lifetime.

After he brought Evie to the hospital, he went back to the station and gathered guns before heading out with Howard to try and track down whoever attacked. Forrest knew that if they were smart enough they wouldn't be in town, but he was too angry to think logically, he just wanted to find them and make them pay.

''It's not as bad as it looks,'' she told him quietly, holding back a groan of pain.

''You ain't seen yourself yet,''

Evie went to smile but felt the swelling around her eye being pulled and immediately abandoned the idea. Instead, she closed her eyes again and took in a deep breath. Everything that happened the night before was a mess in her memory. She couldn't remember when it ended, she couldn't remember Forrest finding her or how she got here.

''You...you didn't run into them, did you?'' she asked nervously.

''Sure wish I did,'' Forrest shook his head, standing to move closer to her. ''Who did this?''

Evie shook her head, a small sob escaping her lips and she shifted. She knew how Forrest wanted to handle this but these men weren't to be messed with. The connections they had, the weapons they carried, they had a much bigger advantage. This wasn't a fight she wanted anyone else involved in.

''Evie, they broke your damn leg,'' he told her, gritting his teeth. ''I ain't waitin' for them to come on back to find you again,''

''They won't be back,'' she assured.

''They from Chicago?''

Evie shook her head again.

''I only knew one of them, they go everyone dealing with people who threaten the business. They'll be long gone,''

Forrest balled his hands into fists and looked around for something he could hit. Rage coursed through him, all he wanted to do was find the men that did this, but it was near impossible to do.

''I'm sorry,'' Evie's voice brought him back to reality. ''I should have been more careful,''

''Don't give me that bullshit,'' Forrest shook his head. ''You know this ain't your fault, and I'm gonna get who did it,''

''They're gone, it's done,''

''It ain't done 'til I get hold of them,''

Evie began to protest but was interrupted by a fit of coughing, forcing her to sit up in pain. Forrest watched helplessly as Evie groaned in pain, hands wrapping around her stomach tight as she took a deep breath.

''You uh, got a couple of fractured ribs,'' he told her in a low voice.

Looking up at him with wide eyes, Forrest could tell Evie wasn't expecting that. She hadn't seen the purple blotches all over her face, the swelling, the cuts, the blood. The people who came after her made sure she got their message. She had done wrong by them and this was her punishment. If they ran into her again, there was going to be no waking up in a hospital bed. There was going to be no waking up at all.

''Maybe...maybe it is as bad as it looks,'' Evie slowly laid back onto her pillows.

Forrest was silent for a while, his mind filled with the image of Evie when he found her. He was right up the road and they had come here and beat her to a pulp without him knowing a thing about it, and they had gotten away.

''I thought you...'' Forrest trailed off, clearing his throat.

Evie watched and saw how shaken up it had made him. Forrest Bondurant was a man that many were afraid of, but he too had his own fears. Losing people he cared about was a big one.

Lifting her arm, Evie reached her hand out for him. Forrest stared at it for a moment before taking it in his own, feeling the warmth of her skin. She felt so fragile in his hand. There were a few marks on her knuckles from where she had fought back, but the swelling was barely noticeable beneath his fingertips.

''Thanks for saving my ass,''

* * *

The doctor ordered another night's rest at the hospital and even though Evie protested being in here longer than necessary, it did give her some time to think about what she was going to do now. If Clive had found her, it meant any of them would now know where she was hiding out. If they happened to come back into town one day, she wasn't going to take her chances on them not paying her another visit.

Forrest had gone back to the shack with Howard to make sure no one else had showed up, but the place was exactly as he remembered it from the night before. Blood stains on the blanket outside and a stone cold fire. Forrest drove Evie's car to the hospital to pick her up, not wanting her to have to come back here. This would always be their place, but for now it had been tainted.

''I can walk just fine,'' Evie huffed as she stepped out of her room, a pair of crutches aiding her.

Forrest walked at her pace beside her, his hands in his pockets so he wouldn't reach out to help her. Stubborn woman she was. Her leg had been plastered and would stay that way for a few weeks, another fact that didn't sit well with her. The first being that Forrest wouldn't allow her to check into the hotel in town.

''I don't need a babysitter,'' she frowned as they finally made it outside.

''I ain't your babysitter,'' Forrest shook his head. ''But you be better off stayin' at the station, not off on your own somewhere 'round here,''

''I was on my own for years Forrest, I can take care of myself,''

''That why you ended up in a hospital bed, huh?'' he reminded, earning himself an angry glare. ''Look, you staying at the station, least til you get back on your feet since you can't exactly drive now can you?''

He had her there.


	5. Chapter 5

**I want to say thankyou to everyone who has reviewed, I like to read what you guys think and I appreciate the support. As with all my stories, I'm open to suggestions so if there's an angle you'd like the story to go I'd love to hear about it. Thanks!**

* * *

Forrest had one eye on the road as he drove, the other watching Evie carefully as she braced herself for every bump in the road they traveled across. Her whole body was aching, everything was sore. The doctor had wrapped a bandage tightly around her stomach to help the healing of her broken ribs, but there was nothing they could do about swollen bruises.

''Forrest, can you just pull over,'' Evie asked, eyes closed as she focused on breathing.

Without questioning, Forrest slowed the truck down and pulled off the road, letting the engine idle as he turned to Evie. Apart from the purple bruises, her skin was almost white. Evie reached for the door, opening it and leaning out to throw up whatever was in her stomach. Forrest cringed as he listened, knowing there was nothing he could do.

Every time he head her cries of pain, saw her discomfort or heard her being sick, it just made him angrier and angrier. Someone had come along and put their hands on her, they had hurt her and Forrest wasn't there to stop it.

''You shouldn't be outta hospital,'' he shook his head as she closed the door, leaning back into her seat.

''I'm fine,''

''You sure as hell ain't,''

Evie took in a sharp breath, moving her body to sit up higher before groaning in pain. She wasn't exactly helping her case against Forrest, but he knew better than to try and talk her into going back to the hospital. In all the pain she was in, she still wasn't willing to go back.

Forrest watched her for a few minutes as she steadied herself before putting the truck into gear to begin driving again. But Evie's voice stopped him again.

''I can't go to the station Forrest,''

Forrest let out a huff of annoyance. They had been arguing about this all morning and on most of the drive out there, but Evie just couldn't let it go.

''You got nowhere else to go,'' he reminded.

''I'll find somewhere,''

''And they'll find you,'' he snapped. ''Again. And they'll hurt you again,''

''Then I'll handle it!''

''Why you being so goddamn difficult, huh? I'm tryin' to help you, protect you, and you just wanna go back out there and get killed this time,'' he spoke angrily.

''I don't wanna be your damn problem Forrest!'' she yelled. ''I can't. I don't deserve your help, I don't deserve your protection and I damn well don't deserve to stay somewhere I turned my back on,''

Forrest remained expressionless as Evie pushed her back onto the seat, trying to fix an ache. It seemed the mere act of raising her voice was painful now too. He now saw why she was being so reluctant to come back with him, because she didn't feel entitled to it. But that was her home too. She grew up on that property as much as he did, their families looked out for one another. It didn't matter that she took off for three years, it was still her home.

Forrest could be mad about it for years, he would always feel hurt by it, but that didn't change the fact he cared about her. It didn't change a thing about how he felt. There were many times during Evie's absence where Forrest wished she wouldn't come back, that if she did they wouldn't say a word to one another. But that didn't change a thing. When he saw her again, it didn't mean a damn thing.

He didn't know how long he had been staring at her before he realized her eyes watering, one small tear rolling down her cheek. Evie tried her best not to cry in front of other, she found it too embarrassing, but she was beyond exhausted and too tired to hold them back.

''Come on now,'' Forrest's voice called to her softly.

''I know I said I couldn't stand it, but you _should_ hate me,'' she advised. '

''Well, I ain't known for doin' what I should,''

''It would make your life a lot easier,''

''I doubt that,''

* * *

Evie had never been so relieved to see no cars at the station when they arrived. It was bad enough that she was going to have to face Howard at some point, she didn't want to deal with a bar full of people. Forrest helped her step out of the truck but that was all Evie was accepting. She could handle the stairs on her own, she could open the doors for herself.

Forrest didn't know how he managed to forget just how stubborn she could be. He trailed behind her with bag in his hand, showing her to the spare room upstairs. Evie knew where everything was, but she took her time walking not only because of her broken leg, but to take in what had changed and what hadn't. Everything she missed seeing the other night when her and Forrest stumbled up to his room in darkness.

''You uh, make yourself at home now,'' Forrest told her as he sat her bag beside the bed.

Evie said nothing as he turned his back and headed for the door, but she stopped him once he had taken a step out into the hall.

''Forrest,'' she called.

''Mm,'' he turned back to her.

''Thank you,''

There was no other comment attached to her words. No argument that she didn't need to be here, no protesting against his help, just a genuine thank you. Evie might not have liked the fact she needed help or the fact she felt unworthy of it, but she did know that she was scared. If those men came back and found her in town, she would be dead, there would be no warning or lesson to be learnt. And although she would never admit that fear aloud, Forrest could see it.

* * *

The first night at the station offered Evie no sleep. It wasn't the aching or the cold air that kept her from rest, but the images in her head of Clive and his men coming for her. She had run ins with many bad people over the years, but she had never been ambushed. Those people she got involved with were the worst kind of dangerous. They had no limits, all they cared about was payback.

So Evie laid wide awake in the spare room, exhausted but unable to sleep, as her horrors haunted her over and over again. She had many regrets over the past few years but one always lingered in her mind, one that was standing out to her quite a lot that night.

She should have never left this place.

* * *

 _If Evie could choose to do one thing for the rest of her life, it would be to sit at the top of a mountain at sunset with Forrest by her side. They had driven all afternoon to get to the top of the mountain they always stared at from their home which now looked like a small dot in the distance._

 _She liked when they took off like this. They'd finished what they had to at their farms for the day, they gathered whatever they could and just drove. Forrest's father would probably be wondering where they were in his truck, but that was something they would deal with when they went back. Anytime either of them were missing from their family farms, everyone knew they would off somewhere together._

 _They were eighteen. They were in love. Although neither of them had admit that yet, it was quite obvious to everyone around them._

 _Evie leaned back on the blanket they had laid out, her head falling into Forrest's lap. He looked down at her, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips, and began running his fingers through the ends of her hair. Evie let out a content sigh and gazed up at him._

 _''Can we live here?'' she asked with a sweet smile._

 _Forrest chuckled, seeing how serious she was._

 _''On the edge of a mountain that takes more then an hour to get to?''_

 _''It's perfect,'' Evie nodded. ''Ain't no one around to bother us,''_

 _''Except each other,''_

 _Evie frowned and looked back up at him._

 _''You sayin' I'm a bother?''_

 _''You always bother me Evelyn,''_

 _Evie pushed herself up until she was just below Forrest's chin, leaning on his chest._

 _''In what way?'' she asked quietly, a mischievous look on her face._

 _Forrest smirked, shaking his head at how she always pulled the seductive tricks out. But he always fell for them, every time. Leaning down to her lips, Forrest stopped before kissing her to whisper._

 _''A real good way,''_

 _Evie's hand went to Forrest's cheek as she pulled him closer, prolonging the slow and soft kiss. Something neither of them would grow tired of was one another's lips._

* * *

''Never looked better Evelyn,''

Evie rolled her eyes at Howard as she slowly made her way to the bar to pour a cup of coffee. She didn't know where Forrest was off to, but he had a farm to run, he had probably been up and working for hours. Evie managed to get maybe one or two hours of rest during the night and apparently that was quite obvious to the oldest Bondurant boy.

''I tell you what, you sure know how to get yourself in a whole heap of shit,'' Howard shook his head.

''No arguments from me on that one,'' she groaned, lifting the cup to her lips and smelling the strong coffee.

''So that's your plan is it? Bring your shit back here with you after all these years and get Forrest to pick up behind you,''

Evie had been expecting all of this from Howard. They both saw this situation the same way. This was why Evie didn't want to stay here, she didn't want anyone thinking she was using what her and Forrest had to get out of her mess. Her and Howard always thought on the same path, one of the many reasons they clashed quite often, but she didn't know how to argue against something she also believed.

''I ain't gonna be here long,'' she told him, frowning as she took a mouthful of hot coffee.

Howard turned to look at her with another shake of his head. It seemed everything she did offended him. There was three years of pent up anger he had yet to unleash on her yet, but she was hoping his alcoholic state would minimize it.

''So you takin' off again?'' he asked angrily. ''Why'd you bother comin' back then?''

''I'm not leaving the goddamn county,'' she cut him off with a glare. ''I just ain't stayin' here, it's not my place,''

''What'd you expect, you just took off on him,''

Evie noticed the change in Howard's voice, looking over to him as he began eating his breakfast. He hated what she had done to Forrest, just as she did, but unlike her he had witnessed Forrest over those years. He saw his brother with a broken heart.

''He should hate me like you do. I don't know why he doesn't,''

''You know damn well why he don't hate you,'' Howard mumbled. ''He tried, for a while there I thought he did, but then you show up again and he's actin' like a schoolboy again,''

''I wanted him to hate me, I was sure when I came back he would but I couldn't stand the thought of it,'' she told him, amazed at the fact she was having an actual conversation with Howard.

''Well it ain't my business,'' Howard huffed, standing up and pushing his plate away. ''But whatever mess you're in, just know we got more than enough shit to deal with 'round here,''

Then Howard disappeared out the front door, probably on his way to the barn to find a fresh jar of moonshine and get on with his day. Evie stood by the bar and kept drinking her coffee, Howard's words playing on her mind.

 _You know damn well why he don't hate you._


	6. Chapter 6

**I just want to thank everyone reading the story and I'd love to encourage some feedback, I really want to hear from you guys to know if you're liking it so far or if there's anything you'd like to see included, anything really! Thanks!**

It was late at night when Forrest heard noises from the spare room where Evie was staying. Being a light sleeper, not much got by him at night, he heard everything. He could heard heavy breathing and then a few creaks of the floorboards. It wasn't his business what she was doing in there, she probably needed to go to the bathroom or grab a glass of water, nothing was wrong.

But it plagued Forrest's thoughts too much for him to simply lay there and go back to sleep. Kicking off his blankets, he stood up from his mattress on the floor and carefully walked over to the door, peering out and across the hall to the spare room. He couldn't help himself now, he had to check on her. Forrest did his best to move around silently, pushing the door to Evie's room slightly and seeing an empty bed.

''Sorry,'' a voice came from the other side of the room. ''Didn't mean to wake you,''

Forrest watched as Evie wrapped one arm around her stomach, the other holding her weight as she leaned against the dresser in the corner. The moon was bright in the sky, it's light shining through the window and onto Evie, beads of sweat visible on her bare shoulder which was muddled with bruises. She looked like she was in agony, every part of her body in pain.

''Um, you alright?'' he asked, taking a step further into the room.

Evie felt like crying. She managed to fall asleep early on in the night but was jolted awake by a nightmare, her body sitting straight up as she choked for breath, pain searing through her as she remembered she had two broken ribs. Then she had to stand up, she had to try and breathe.

She didn't expect to wake him up, but she also forgot just how much of a light sleeper he was.

''I'm fine,'' she nodded, her breathing unsteady.

''No you ain't,'' he walked closer, seeing that her body was trembling. ''You shouldn't be up,''

''Well sleeping isn't working,''

Forrest knew what she meant. He had seen a lot in his life, done a lot of bad things and witnessed more horrific scenes than one should. He knew how it made sleeping difficult.

Evie moved from the dresser back to the bed, sitting on the edge as she winced in pain. Forrest could see tears stinging her eyes, but she just took a deep breath and looked toward the window, trying to stop her lip from quivering.

''Evie,'' Forrest began, stepping closer. ''They ain't gonna hurt you again, you hear me? Nobody's gonna hurt you,''

''I know,'' she sniffled, nodding.

''I'm gonna find those bastards,''

''Forrest-''

''I _will_ find them,'' he assured.

''Forrest, please,''

Evie looked up at him with pleading eyes. She didn't want to hear about those men anymore, she didn't want them on her mind at all. She especially didn't want the thought of Forrest running into them. If he got hurt because of her she wouldn't be able to forgive herself.

Forrest moved closer and closer until he was standing right in front of her and Evie leaned forward to rest her forehead against his stomach. Forrest took a moment before resting his hand on her shoulder. This was the most vulnerable he had seen Evie since she had been back. Forrest could tell she was scared of her old life catching up with her again, but he wasn't going to let anyone hurt her again.

* * *

Being cooped up in the spare room grew tiring quite fast. After a few days, Evie started a new routine of spending the morning out on the porch with a cigarette, watching as the Bondurant boys began their work for the day. It made her feel rather lazy as she had nothing to do with her day, but it only took a slight movement for her to remember exactly why she wasn't up for any tasks.

One morning as she made her way downstairs, quite quickly now that she had abandoned the crutches she hated so much, she heard a pan sizzling on the stove. It was far too late in the morning for any of the boys to still be in the restaurant for breakfast, but as Evie made it to the bottom stair, she looked over to see woman with strawberry blonde hair cooking behind the bar.

She had heard Howard comment on the new help they had in the bar area, but Evie had never met her until this moment.

''Oh, mornin','' the woman looked over at Evie with a friendly grin. ''I didn't know anyone was left up there. You like some breakfast?''

Evie stared at the woman for a moment before she realized she had yet to say a word.

''Um, just some coffee,'' Evie nodded, stepping closer to the bar stool to sit.

The woman began fixing up a cup and pouring some freshly brewed coffee, one hand balancing the kettle and the other flipping the bacon in the frying pan. The woman looked familiar to Evie, but she couldn't place where she had seen her before or if she had actually see her at all.

Those thoughts were quickly gone once a warm mug was placed on the counter in front of her, the strong smell of coffee overpowering her. Evie took a sip as she looked out the front door, seeing Jack in the distance down at the barn.

''I'm Maggie Beauford,''

Evie turned back to the counter where the woman's hand was extended, a cigarette in the other as she gave a polite smile. Evie reached over and took her hand, shaking it lightly.

''Evie Henry,''

''You work on the farm?'' Maggie asked, turning back to the stove for a moment.

''No, just a temporary house guest,'' Evie told her with a sigh.

''Well there are worse places you could be,'' Maggie offered. ''It's lovely out here,''

''You not from 'round here?'' Evie asked curiously.

Maggie shook her head, the smile falling from her lips and she turned again. Moving the bacon from the pan to a plate, the woman lit another cigarette and put the plate on the counter in front of them both.

''No, I'm from the city,'' Maggie told her with a shrug.

''What brings you out this way?'' Evie questioned casually, lighting a cigarette for herself.

''It can be a bit much. The noise, the drama, the people are-''

''Assholes,'' Evie cut in with a light chuckle.

Maggie smiled in return.

''You been around those sorts too?''

''Can't say I enjoyed my travels,'' Evie nodded.

''So what brings _you_ out this way?'' Maggie inquired.

Evie took a moment, swallowing her mouthful of coffee and looking back out the front door. Forrest was opening up the large doors of the barn and guiding the car up the the crates inside. A cigar wedged between his lips and a mean look on his face, Forrest was a man many people in Franklin County feared. But the only thing that Evie feared of him was his absence.

''It's my home,''

Maggie watched as Evie turned back to her coffee, finishing the last of it before she poured more into the mug, sensing one cup wasn't enough. The red haired woman could tell there was something between Evie and Forrest Bondurant. A few times during the day he would walk up the stairs for a few minutes before coming back down and continuing on with his day.

''So you went away for a while, huh?'' Maggie asked, sparking up the conversation again.

Evie nodded, bringing the warm cup to her lips again.

''Where'd you go?''

''Here and there, I lost track,'' she shook her head.

''What made you leave this place?''

Evie shrugged her shoulders. She was tired of that question. She asked herself the same thing everyday. Every time she looked out the window and imagined that life she could have been living compared to all the mistakes she had made. Maybe it was all too late now. She was sick of thinking about it.

''Young and stupid I suppose,'' Evie told the woman before drinking the remains of her coffee. ''Thanks,''

Maggie watched as Evie limped back toward the staircase, glancing out the front door one more time before heading back up to her room. She wondered if she had asked too many questions, been to intrusive, but then again Evie may have been a bit like Forrest himself in that way. They didn't say too much, but they had a lot on their mind.

* * *

Evie was standing in front of the mirror in her room, staring at the battered reflection of her body. The purple bruises around her ribs were so dark that she thought they would never fade. She hated that someone had made her like this, that she couldn't have fought back, that they had won over her. But it was done now, she wouldn't have to see them again. At least she hoped. If they did come back, she was going to make them feel even worse than the condition they had left her in.

Her head whipped around to the door as she heard a glass smash downstairs. It was late afternoon and the Bondurant boys were out for the evening delivering a few crates of liquor, Maggie was in charge of the restaurant. It wasn't long after Forrest informed Evie they were leaving that she had gone down to see what Maggie was dealing with. There were only two men quietly eating dinner, but by the commotion she could hear, they weren't so quiet anymore.

Evie quickly buttoned up her shirt, hurrying over to the door with her limp as she shoved her gun into the back of her pants. When she opened her door and headed down the hall toward the stairs, Evie could hear Maggie telling them to leave.

''We're closin' up,'' Maggie declared. ''Go on now,''

''Aw come on darlin','' one of the men complained with a laugh. ''You ain't gotta be like that,''

''Imagine the fun we could have,'' the other encouraged. ''We ain't goin' nowhere,''

''I said we're closin','' Maggie told them again in a firmer voice.

''And I said we ain't going,''

''I suggest you rethink that,''

Both of the men and Maggie turned to Evie at the bottom of the stairs, a fiery glare staring back at them. No one spoke for a moment as the men realized there was more than just the one woman left at the restaurant. But they didn't look worried, instead they seemed even more excited to continue their persuasion.

''And who might you be honey?'' the bigger man asked, a grin on his lips.

''I'm tellin' you to get the fuck out,'' Evie answered angrily.

''Looks like we got two playin' hard to get,'' the other man laughed.

''Do I look like I'm playing?'' Evie snapped, pulling out her gun and aiming toward them.

Maggie gasped and stood back, moving further down the bar toward Evie as she watched carefully for what was going to happen. The men chuckled lightly to themselves, taking a step closer. Evie didn't know what was making her more angry. The fact they were so stupid or the fact they thought she wouldn't shoot them.

''Calm down sweetie, no need to-''

Evie had enough, firing a bullet into the man's leg. He screamed in pain as he fell to the floor, the other man looking down at him in surprise.

''You fucking bitch!'' the man on the ground cried.

Then Evie saw the other man reach behind his back to grab his own gun, but she was quicker and shot his arm, causing the same reaction as the other man. Maggie didn't know what to do. Evie walked over to them and kicked away the man's gun he dropped, aiming back and forth between the two as they stared back at her in fear. Finally.

''Now get your asses up and get the fuck out, hear me?''

* * *

It was night by the time they got back. The back of the truck was empty, another successful sale day. Jack was the first to exit the truck, then Forrest. Howard must have had more pressing matters to attend to in town such as a barn full of women and whiskey.

Evie was sitting on the porch with a cigarette between her lips and a gun by her side. Forrest immediately had a feeling something was wrong when he saw her, but Jack ran ahead of him, getting in the first word.

''How you doing Evie?'' the youngest brother asked.

''Not bad Jack, yourself?'' Evie replied with a smile.

''Just fine,'' Jack grinned. ''Starvin' though,''

''There's dinner in on the stove, help yourself,''

When Jack hurried inside at the promise of food, Forrest made his way onto the porch. Evie looked out a the stars in the sky before she felt Forrest's stare, turning to meet his gaze. He looked worried, as he did almost every time he looked at her lately. She didn't like that.

''Everything alright?'' he asked cautiously.

''I told Maggie to finish up early,'' she told him. ''Had a few unpleasant customers,''

''They give you any trouble?''

''Nothing I couldn't handle,'' Evie shook her head, lifting the gun in her hand to show him how she done so. ''They'll probably come back lookin' to have a word with you about it all,''

''I'm sure they will,'' Forrest nodded, walking over to sit on the other side of the small table.

Evie watched him take off hit hat and sit it in the middle of the table, his eyes looking out at the night sky just as hers were a moment ago. It was always beautiful here at night, everything was illuminated by the moon, everything was peaceful. So that's where they remained, sitting in comfortable silence, neither of them feeling the need to say a word.


	7. Chapter 7

**Once again, thanks for everyone reading and leaving reviews, I really love hearing from you guys.**

 **Also with Forrest and Evie's age, they're in their late 20's/early 30's. The flashbacks are all different ages, I'll start clarifying that, I apologize.**

Evie watched the orange glow of her cigarette die down as she stubbed it out, pushing away the small glass ashtray as Maggie placed a cup in front of her. The intoxicating smell of coffee made it's way to her senses and she could barely wait to take a sip.

''I've got some eggs and bacon on the stove and some fresh toast,'' Maggie told her happily.

''Oh no I'm fine thank y-''

''Don't be silly, I ain't seen you eat a proper meal since I've been here,''

Evie preferred coming down for her meals when the restaurant was empty, usually after Maggie had gone and no one was around. It wasn't that she disliked the people who came by, she just liked it better when it was quiet. It had been a few days since she had been down during hours and although there were some people over in the corner eating their lunch, she didn't mind it.

She hadn't seen Forrest in a couple of days either, only heard his voice down the hall or caught a glance of him working around the property from her window. Evie didn't mind being alone, it was by choice anyway, but after the chaos and drama her life had been filled with in the past few years it was nice to feel safe and comfortable somewhere. Especially here.

''I gotta say thank you again for the other evenin','' Maggie spoke, leaning against the bar as the eggs and bacon sizzled behind her.

''I told you not to worry about it,'' Evie shook her head, taking another mouthful of coffee.

''I know, but I can't imagine what would've happened...'' she shook her head. ''Just know I'm grateful,''

Evie looked up and smiled with a nod before Maggie turned to gather up the food. She wasn't too hungry before, but now that she could see the crispy bacon and smell the fresh bread she was starving. Maggie had a grin on her lips as she sat the full plate down in front of Evie.

''Thank you,''

''More than welcome,'' Maggie smiled proudly. ''You should come down for lunch more often, don't it get lonely up there?''

Evie shrugged her shoulders, finishing off a mouthful of bacon.

''It doesn't bother me,''

''You're a lot like him,'' Maggie noted.

''Who's that?''

''Forrest,''

Evie paused as she lifted the fork to her mouth, shaking her thoughts reaching for her coffee instead. Maggie saw the slight panic in her movements and smiled to herself.

* * *

 _It was Evie's favorite day of the year. It was the county's market day and the town was overrun with people. Every family, every farm, every person was in the town center buying and selling local goods. It was a day full of music, dancing and drinking up all of the homemade liquor._

 _Evie's family had brought down a truck full of overflowing crates to sell and so did the Bondurants. Evie and Forrest spotted one another at the same time. Forrest had a dark blue shirt on, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows as he unloaded the crates, his eyes glued on Evie who was wearing a dress in almost the exact same shade._

 _''Evelyn!''_

 _Forrest watched as Evie's attention was taken by her father handing her a few bags of fruit. Soon the same thing happened to Forrest, his mother reminding him that the sooner they unpacked the truck the sooner him and his brothers would be able to go do whatever they pleased._

 _It was almost an hour later when Forrest was walking through the crowd of people, his hands pushed down in his pockets as he maneuvered his way further into the town center. It wasn't until he made his way over to a quiet corner to observe at a distance that he felt someone standing close behind him._

 _''Fancy seeing you here,'' Evie smiled, folding her arms as she leaned against the brick wall beside them._

 _Forrest grinned back at her, his mood lifting significantly just by hearing her voice. He wasn't a massive fan of the crowds, but Evie made it much more bearable. The dress she was wearing did in fact match his shirt color and was even more appealing up close. It was long sleeve due to the icy winds, but it clung to her skin perfectly. Forrest couldn't believe how much he enjoyed looking at her._

 _''I've never seen you lookin' so handsome,''_

 _Evie enjoyed the way Forrest smiled lightly and looked down at his feet shyly. She also enjoyed that she was only person who made him do that or who even got to witness it._

 _''You look...beautiful,'' Forrest told her in a quiet voice._

 _Evie's lips pulled into a tight smile before she looked around, reaching up on her toes to kiss him. Neither of them had made it public that they were any sort of couple, they hadn't told anyone, they hadn't even spoken about it. They were like that though. Things just happened and fell into place, they didn't overthink any of it._

 _''Come on,''_

 _Forrest walked along behind Evie as she lead the way behind the building to an open field. Every other part of town was all but deserted. Evie kept walking, turning to see that Forrest was still following as she made her way into the middle of field. The grass was long enough to graze along the tips of her fingers as they hung by her side and the sun shone brightly against her face as she looked up toward it._

 _The music from the town was still just as audible as it was a moment ago and Evie took a few steps closer to Forrest, taking his hand in her own._

 _''What you doin'?'' Forrest asked with a curious smile._

 _''I remember you sayin' you'd dance with me today,'' Evie reminded._

 _Forrest immediately stiffened at the thought of dancing. He wasn't coordinated enough for that and if he was, he was sure he would still look like an absolute fool trying to do so._

 _''I did not,'' he shook his head but made no attempt to distance himself from her body which was now pressed against his. ''I said maybe,''_

 _''One dance,'' she looked up at him with a pout. ''Ain't no one around,''_

 _Forrest looked behind them, no one in sight, then back at Evie who hadn't taken her eyes off him._

 _''One dance,'' he repeated._

 _Evie almost yelped in excitement. Forrest snaked one hand around her waist and used his other hand to entwine their fingers. Then they began to sway to the side, the music controlling their pace. Forrest didn't know if he was doing it right, but if he was Evie didn't notice one bit. The truth was, Forrest didn't care what he looked like trying to dance or if anyone was secretly watching, he just enjoyed holding her like this._

 _They moved around like that for a few minutes before Evie leaned her head against his chest, their bodies still swaying. Two different songs had played but neither of them stopped moving. Evie was beginning the think Forrest enjoyed dancing, and even he was contemplating that theory. He pressed a soft kiss against her head before he rest his own against it, pulling her as close to him as possible._

* * *

When Evie had told Forrest those two men from the other night would come back looking for a word with him, she hated that she had been right.

It was almost closing time when Maggie looked up from the bar to see two unfamiliar and unwanted faces walking in through the door. She didn't even wait for them to say a word, instead rushing straight over to Forrest's office and knocking a few times on the door as she kept her eyes on the two men. They were looking around the restaurant, their eyes scanning for anyone else that was around.

''Forrest,'' Maggie poked her head into his office.

Looking up from his notebook, Forrest immediately abandoned his work as he saw the look of panic on Maggie's face. Every now and then there would be a few troublemakers coming into the place, but Forrest or Howard soon sorted them out. Right now it was only up to Forrest to handle since Howard was out selling moonshine to a few locals in town for the night and Jack was off somewhere with Cricket.

Each of the men had their own way of letting Forrest know they were the same gentlemen Evie had sent running the other night. One had a thick bandage wrapped around his hand while the other had quite a limp in his walk.

''We're closed,'' Forrest told them, walking out ahead of Maggie who hurried back over to the bar.

''Where is she?'' one of them asked with a tone of annoyance.

''Who might that be?''

''The other bitch you got working here,'' he clarified angrily. ''The one that shot us,''

Forrest resisted the urge to let his anger out on them just yet, curling his fingers into fists.

''There a problem?'' he asked with a glare.

''A problem? You fuckin' deaf?'' the other man spoke. ''You running this place, ain't you? We got shot!''

''Oh I'm sure it was warranted,'' Forrest shrugged, reaching into his pocket to slip his fingers through his brass knuckles.

The two men looked angrier at Forrest now, both of them stepping closer to him before Forrest launched his fist toward the closest one. Maggie called out to him in fear, both her hands covering her mouth as she watched on in horror.

Evie's door swung open violently as she heard the noises down in the restaurant, rushing as best she could toward the stairs. She didn't bother tucking her gun into the pocket of her pants, instead holding it tight in her hand as she hurried down the stairs. Her heart began beating faster as she saw the two men from the other night both attacking Forrest. The sound of his brass knuckles hitting their bodies was gruesome.

Evie lifted her gun and fired a shot toward the men, hitting the chair just behind one of their legs. All three men turned to the woman who shot the bullet, eyes wide for an array of reasons.

''You bitch!'' one of the men growled, turning his attention from Forrest to her. ''You think you just fuckin'-''

Cutting him off, Evie fired another shot toward the man, this one hitting his chest. Forrest pinned the other man against the wall as they all watched his friend drop to the ground, motionless.

''Merv!'' the man shouted in anger. ''You fuckin' killed him!''

Evie lowered her hand as she stared at the man's body, heart beating fast and mind spinning with thoughts. Forrest watched her worriedly in the silent room, time seeming to have stopped for a moment. Then the man in his grip hit his head hard against Forrest's, swinging his fist around to hit him again in the jaw.

The commotion over by the side was enough to grab Evie's attention again, seeing Forrest fall back to the ground. Then all that rage came back, but she soon discovered the other man had a gun too, and it was pointed right at her.

''I'm gone enjoy this,'' he told her with a grin as he moved closer.

Evie didn't have time to raise her own weapon. Forrest groaned as he moved around, looking up and seeing what was going on. His heart almost stopped. Then his body took over, scrambling to his feet while falling forward to grab the man's waist, pulling him down to the ground hard. But not before he fired toward Evie, his bullet causing a river of red to fall down her shoulder.


	8. Chapter 8

''Forrest it barely hit me,'' Evie argued as she held her hand on her shoulder.

They were sitting in Forrest's office, a box of first aid supplies on the desk in front of them. Howard had arrived home not long after the drama and he and Forrest both took the men out of the restaurant. Evie didn't ask what they did with them, instead she stared down at the floor, thinking about the fact she had killed a man moments earlier.

Evie had killed a few people in her life, all of them deserving of their punishment, but it never left her with a good feeling. Taking a life was never easy, but sometimes it had to be done.

''From the blood I'm seein' I think it did some damage,'' he fought, dipping a cloth into some water.

''You don't have to-''

''Well I am,''

Evie stared up at him for a moment before relenting. She let go of her shoulder, her blood stained hands working now on undoing the buttons on her shirt. Forrest cleared his throat awkwardly, watching as she slid one arm out of the sleeves with a hiss of pain. Forrest did his best to ignore the fact she was half undressed in front of him and began carefully cleaning away the blood from her wound.

They both remained in silence as Forrest sat down the damp cloth, reaching over for a bandage to wrap around her shoulder and stop it from bleeding even more. It was a deep gash, but it could have been so much worse.

Evie turned her head slightly to look up at his focused expression, noticing the blood around his lip and next to his eye. It was easy to forget that Forrest ever felt pain after a fight, he gave off no indication of discomfort.

''I'm sorry,'' she spoke quietly, still eyeing his wounds. ''It seems I can't stop causing trouble for you,''

Forrest stopped what he was doing, moving back and shaking his head.

''You ain't no trouble,''

''It's all I've done since I've been back,''

''Those bastards would have been a pain in my ass no matter what,'' he denied. ''Ain't your fault, alright?''

Evie stared back at him, hearing his words but disagreeing entirely. This was his life and even given their past, she still felt like she was intruding with her own problems. Even when she tried to help, she ended up getting him hurt. The last thing she ever wanted was to make his life difficult.

Forrest could tell she felt guilty, nothing he said would change that, she was a stubborn woman. Forrest's life was always full of danger and bad people, it was what he had grown up around and it was what his business dealt with. Having Evie around changed none of that, but she wouldn't see it that way.

''You gonna let me take care of you now?'' she asked, snapping out of her thoughts.

''Huh?''

Evie stood up and pressed her fingers to the side of his face, tracing along his skin right near the cut on his eyebrow. Forrest felt the sting of her touch closing in on his wound, but he gave off no sign of it in his expression.

''Sit,'' she ordered.

Forrest moved past her and reluctantly sat down, letting out a long sigh as Evie rummaged through the first aid kit for some ointment, watching as she tucked her long hair behind her ear. He wondered if she could tell he was staring at her, if she could tell every time he was staring at her when she wasn't looking.

After a moment, Evie turned to Forrest with a small piece of ointment soaked cotton and carefully angled his face up toward the light. Forrest tried to look anywhere else, but it seemed his eyes couldn't take focus off her careful gaze.

''At least this won't be adding to your collection of scars,'' she told him as her hand gently moved along his face.

''Can't say the same for yours,'' Forrest told her, eyes gesturing to her shoulder.

''The way I am at the moment it'll blend in just fine,'' she shrugged, continuing her work.

Forrest didn't like thinking of the fact that someone had hurt her once again and he didn't stop it. He hated that they had come in here looking to hurt her in the place he told her she would be safe. But they wouldn't be coming back, he and Howard had made sure of that. So did Evie.

Forrest watched Evie shoot the man, he saw the look on her face after she pulled the trigger.

''You alright?'' he asked as she finished cleaning the cut near his eye.

Evie stepped away from him and leaned against the desk, pulling her hair behind her ears once again. She knew Forrest wasn't asking about her shoulder this time.

''I know the type that'll come back with bigger guns,'' she told him, folding her arms. ''I started it, only fair I finish it, right?''

''This ain't your fault,'' he shook his head.

''Don't do that,'' she sighed, stepping forward to stand in front of him. ''I'm not fragile, I'm not made of glass,''

''Damned if I don't already know that,''

Forrest moved his hands to rest below her hips, holding her gently where she was as he felt her hands on his shoulders. They stared at one another in silence, no expression on their faces. Evie's hands moved up to run her fingers through his hair and Forrest's eyes slowly closed as he sighed in content. He was sure there wasn't another person on the planet that could make him feel so calm.

Evie liked seeing him like this. Forrest never said much about how he felt, but she knew he had a million things running through his mind, torturing and worrying him. But when they were alone and she held him, she could see all of that roll off his shoulders.

''It's late,'' Evie yawned, slowly moving back.

''Mmm,'' Forrest agreed.

All the lights in the restaurant were off as Forrest walked Evie upstairs, following behind as she limped her way toward her bedroom door. She already knew it would be more of a struggle tonight to get to sleep after what had happened, there was a lot that would be flashing through her mind. Another thing to keep her awake, another nightmare she would be reliving.

Evie pushed her door open but stopped when Forrest leaned against the doorframe, watching as she turned toward him.

''I'm okay Forrest,'' she smiled up at him tiredly. ''You ain't gotta worry about me,''

''You don't make it easy,'' he scoffed.

''Yeah, I guess not,''

With him standing there so close, it was hard for Evie not to lean in and put her hands against his chest, feeling the thump of his heart beneath her fingers. Forrest tried to stop his breathing from getting out of control but it was hard when she glanced up at him, their faces closer than he thought.

Forrest took charge of the moment, dipping his head slightly to capture her lips with his own, one hand sliding along her jaw. Evie's hands remained on his chest for a moment before snaking their way up to his neck. Their kiss was soft and slow, savoring every moment until they paused to take a breath. Forrest could feel Evie's breath against his lips, sending a shiver through his body.

''Will you stay with me for a while?''

* * *

It was in the early hours of the morning when Forrest woke up, quickly remembering he wasn't in his room. Evie laid beside him, the bottom half of her body covered by blankets and the top half only covered by a thin undergarment. One of her hands were resting on his stomach, her head resting comfortably between a pillow and his chest.

Forrest hadn't slept so well in a long time. He didn't intend to fall asleep, but he was glad that he did. Waking up for a moment and noticing Evie by his side and feeling her move closer to him in her sleep, Forrest had missed that. He missed being so near to her.

The morning sun was just beginning to rise and Forrest made his first attempt to move, knowing work had to be done. Waking up in the middle of winter wasn't as painful as waking up and having to leave Evie.

''No,'' she groaned, her arm stretching over his body.

Forrest wasn't aware she was awake, pausing his movements and watching her try to grab a tight hold of him. His lips quickly pulled into an amused grin, reaching out to push her long hair out of her face. Forrest always thought Evie was beautiful, he had never laid eyes on someone he admired more, and even with her mouth hanging open and hair in a mess, he thought no different.

''Time...what time?'' she mumbled.

''About five,'' Forrest guessed by glancing out the window.

Evie let out a long sigh that turned into a groan as Forrest began to push back the blankets. For as long as he could remember he had been awake and working before the sun had completely risen, his body was in a habit, but Evie's wasn't.

''Don't want to,'' she mumbled as she reached out for the hem of Forrest's shirt to pull him back.

''You don't have to go anywhere,'' he reminded, sitting on the edge of the bed and leaning over to press a kiss to her forehead. ''Go back to sleep,''

Evie closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of his lips on her skin. This was what she wanted in her life. She wanted to fall asleep with Forrest and wake up with him by her side, she wanted to see him everyday instead of keeping their distance. She wanted him in her life.

''Forrest,'' she called out quietly, rolling over in the bed to face the door.

''Yeah?'' he turned, his hand resting on the door handle.

''Come back, won't you?''

Forrest had already planned on doing that later in the evening anyway, but he was glad she felt the same.

''Yes ma'am,''

* * *

Evie watched as the doctor looked over her file, scribbling something on a piece of paper as he adjusted his glasses. It had been a few weeks of limping and getting around much slower than usual, but the cast around Evie's leg was finally gone. It felt wrong to walk on it, it was a lot weaker than it was before, but she was beyond relieved to be back to normal. Her ribs were still a bit sore and there were some marks on her body that weren't going to go away, but it was nothing she wasn't willing to deal with.

Forrest was standing out by the truck smoking a cigar, his hat pulled forward almost covering his eyes. Evie walked out of the hospital doors and smiled at the sight of the man waiting for her.

The past few weeks had been so normal that both of them questioned if they were losing their minds. Evie was downstairs helping Maggie more during the day, even sitting down to have her meals with Forrest instead of an empty room, and of a night she slept with ease. Although she credited that to the fact she spent most of her nights in Forrest's arms.

''Free at last,''

Forrest looked up immediately at the voice, tilting his hat back to look at her. She looked just as she did when she walked in, but her leg was significantly less bulky beneath her pants.

''How's it feel?''

''Good as new,'' she smiled.

They wasted no time hopping into the truck to get away from the hospital. It had been quite a while since Forrest had been away from the station in the middle of the day, it felt odd to him. Evie began thanking Forrest again for helping her over the past few weeks but he told her not to worry about any of it. She had been no nuisance to him, he liked having her around.

But now he worried that was going to change.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys, I hope you enjoy this chapter because a lot happens!**

Although neither of them had said a word about it, both Forrest and Evie were thinking about the fact that when they returned to the station, they were going to have to deal with her leaving. Evie didn't want to overstay her welcome, she was only supposed to be staying while she recovered and she was more than capable of going off on her own again now. But she couldn't stop thinking about how good these past few weeks had been, how close her and Forrest had become, how much had been mended between them.

Forrest didn't want her to go. She might have just found a hotel in town, but it was still too far away for his liking. Not only did he worry about some rather bad people finding her, but he was going to miss seeing her everyday and he had only just become used to it again. Three years without her and then over a month of living in the same house, he wasn't ready to let her go again.

''Where we going?'' Evie asked as Forrest turned off the road.

''Thought you might wanna see something,''

Evie studied the amused look on his face when he saw her confusion, wondering where they were off too. But it didn't take long at all for her to realize where he was taking her. She remembered the rocky track, granted it was a little more worn down than the last time she had been this way, but she knew that it was the beginning of a drive her and Forrest used to take every now and then.

They had a few places all over the county that they liked to visit, but this one took a bit longer to get to and therefore took up their whole afternoon. Evie wondered if he had come up here in the years she was gone, but she doubted he would have wanted to be reminded of the girl who took off on him.

Forrest glanced over and saw that Evie had a genuine smile on her lips as she looked out at all the trees they passed and the view they were building to. It was the same look she had on her face every time they used to come up here. It was contagious too, Forrest realizing he was grinning like a teenager too as they made it to the top of the mountain.

Evie was glad the cast on her leg was off because she all but jumped out of the car and hurried to the edge, standing on top of one of the large boulders and looking around at the county below. There was no other view that matched this one. Right here she could see everywhere she grew up, all the memories she shared with her family and Forrest, her whole life.

Not a moment later she felt Forrest beside her, his arm brushing against her own as he lowered his hands into his pockets.

''Won't get this view anywhere else,'' Evie sighed happily, admiring her surroundings.

''You been all around the country,'' Forrest reminded. ''You must have seen somethin' more interesting,''

''Hell no,'' she shook her head adamantly. ''Ain't nothing like this right here. Never thought I'd see it again,''

''You would've been back one day,''

''I don't think I would've survived much longer to get back,''

Forrest hated imagining the life Evie was living for the past few years. It wasn't a life she enjoyed living. The business she was involved in was much bigger than selling moonshine and having a few unpleasant customers, it was far more deadly. But that wasn't her life anymore, she swore it never would be again. She was home now and that's where she intended on staying.

''I wish I knew where you were,'' Forrest told her in a soft, sincere voice.

Evie turned to him with a pained expression.

''Don't go putting anything on yourself Forrest,'' she shook her head. ''I got myself into that heap of mess, I'm just glad I crawled out of it,''

''I would have got you out of there,'' he continued.

"You'd get yourself killed, those people don't play around,'' she explained. ''I'm just glad they ran into me on my own and not out the station,''

''I ain't,'' he grumbled.

''If they saw you helping me then they'd be after you too,''

''At least then I wouldn't have to go lookin' for them,'' he shrugged.

''It ain't funny Forrest,'' Evie frowned.

''I ain't laughing,'' he continued. ''They come here and hurt you, I'm involved whether they know it or not,''

''They won't be back,'' she shook her head. ''Let it go,''

Forrest moved to stand in front of her, his eyes looking straight into hers.

''Someone hurts you, I won't ever let it go,'' he assured. ''Hurtin' you is worse than hurting me,''

Evie stared up at him as her heart began pounding faster, a lump rising in her throat.

''Forrest,'' she whispered. ''I screwed up everything between us, I can't just come back and expect-''

''You ain't expecting anything,'' he cut in.

''I hurt you so much,''

''Yeah, you did,'' he nodded. ''But ain't that the way life is,''

Evie didn't even realized his hands on her hips or her hands on his arms. They just melted into one another between words, like they were pulled together by force.

''You're staying at the station,'' he told her after a pause.

''What? Forr-''

''Stay,'' he told her again,his lips grazing against her own.

''I'm not taking up that spare room,'' she shook her head. ''The hotel is-''

''With me,'' he interrupted once again. ''Stay with me,''

Evie stared back at him with wide eyes.

''What do you mean?''

''You know what I mean,''

Forrest wanted her to live with him. He wanted to see her every day and night and he didn't want her at some hotel by herself. Not when they were both used to sharing a bed, when they could only really rest when the other was laying beside them.

''You're sure?'' she asked nervously.

''Yes ma'am,''

They grinned at one another like a couple of young teenagers which is exactly how they felt. Forrest never knew much happiness, but Evie brought all the happiness he needed into his life. That's why he couldn't let her go again.

''Y'know I love you,'' Evie told him, her arms resting on his shoulders as she watched his face react.

Forrest's smile faded slightly, adjusting to the shock of her words before it crept back onto his lips.

''Ever since I was a little girl I thought 'I think I'm gonna love that Bondurant boy,' and there hasn't been a day when I haven't,'' she told him with a shy smirk.

''That right?'' he chuckled. ''Well, that boy was thinkin' the same thing about you,''

''Can't blame you for your good taste,''

Forrest smiled and lifted his hands to rest on her cheek. This was happening. No more ignoring the issue or avoiding the conversation.

''I love you too,'' he told her softly. ''I want you to know that,''

Those were words that Forrest had only said a few times in his life, but every time he meant it. Evie nodded and leaned forward to lay against his chest.

''Yeah, I know,''

* * *

Evie balanced a cigarette between her lips as she counted out the cash behind the bar, piling the stacks of money into a safe box that went into Forrest's office. Maggie was wiping down the tables as they listened to the radio, tapping her feet against the wooden floor as she moved around.

''Howard, come dance with me,'' Maggie called out to the man sitting at the bar.

Howard laughed and turned to the red haired woman, lifting up his glass of scotch.

''A few more of these and I might,''

Evie looked up from her work and saw Howard push his glass up onto the counter, reaching down to the empty bottle. Before he had a chance to stand up or even complain about the lack of liquor, Evie bent down to grab a new bottle from under the bar and filled his glass. Howard watched and waited for his drink, giving Evie a small smile and nod of appreciation.

''Alright, I might head off if there ain't no more to be done,'' Maggie walked back over, putting away the cleaning supplies.

''I'll see you tomorrow,'' Evie smiled.

Howard bid farewell to the woman and began sipping at his scotch, looking down at the liquid swirling around in the glass. There was silence as Evie went back to finishing the money count, the radio beginning to buzz and cut out.

It had been over a month since Evie had moved into Forrest's room, officially living at the station. Jack liked having her around, she always tended to take his side in brotherly arguments, but Evie and the eldest Bondurant seemed to always have their differences.

''You really here for good, huh?'' Howard asked after a few minutes passed in silence.

Evie looked over at him and noticed he was actually facing her now, speaking directly to her instead of into his glass like every other time he mumbled something her way.

''I ain't going nowhere,'' she assured.

''Yeah, well, if you do make sure you don't come back,'' he told her seriously. ''You takin' off once was bad enough, if you do it again...you can't,''

''I'm not gonna take off,'' she walked over to stand opposite him. ''Howard, whether you believe it or not, I care about Forrest more than anything. I ain't gonna hurt him again, that's the last thing I want,''

''Well you seem to have a natural skill for it,''

''I'm not goin' anywhere Howard, so you gonna have to get used to it,'' Evie snapped before walking back over to finish up her work.

There was a soft chuckle on the other side of the bar and Evie glanced up once again with a frown to see Howard laughing in her direction. Lifting the glass of scotch to his lips, Howard's amusement continued as Evie stared back at him.

''Gonna be fun havin' you around,'' he shook his head. ''You and Jack sure do have short fuses,''

* * *

Evie looked down at the list in her hand as she sat in the truck, parked on the side of the road in town. She had three full bags of groceries by her side as she checked through what they needed back at the restaurant. Evie and Maggie worked well together and kept the place running smoothly, joking around together as they day went on and they dealt with both pleasant and aggravating customers.

Maggie was running the place on her own for a while that day as Evie insisted she go out and grab supplies. Maggie offered to help her, but Evie wanted to go on her own. She didn't want Maggie knowing why she really needed to visit town.

''Evie!''

Jumping in her seat with fright, Evie turned to see Jack and Cricket standing outside the truck by her open window. They looked amused at her reaction but she just huffed and glared back at them.

''You're gonna give me a goddamn heart attack,'' she scolded. ''What are you doin' here?''

''Just got back from dropping off some crates,'' he told her with a shrug before his eyes widened. ''You ain't gonna believe what happened,''

Evie pushed her door open, stepping outside and taking a deep breath as she waited for Jack to continue. Sometimes she forgot how young the boy was. He was still a kid really, he got up to all sorts of trouble with Cricket. He deserved to have that fun while he was young though. Jack was so eager to be part of the Bondurant's bootlegging business but he had no idea how much of a toll it was going to take on him.

''I saw it right before my eyes, Floyd Banner and a tommy gun walking down the road,'' he told her excitedly.

''Floyd Banner?'' Evie asked, her expression turned to one of concern.

''No lies,'' he nodded. ''Shot a man right through his car window, almost blew the thing up,''

Evie looked down at Jack's hands to see a few bullet shells, the same shells that were in Cricket's hands too.

''What are those?''

''I grabbed 'em off the road before anyone came along,''

''We got Floyd Banner's bullets,'' Cricket chimed in.

Evie knew Forrest wouldn't like this story. Everyone knew of Floyd Banner. He was one of the most dangerous men in the country. When Evie was in Chicago, she had seen just what he was capable of. Bloody and beaten bodies laying in gutters, sending messages out to all his competitors. And Jack worshiped the man like he was a legend. With his machine guns, luxury cars and expensive suits, Jack saw that as living the dream.

''So tell me,'' Evie began. ''Floyd Banner comes into a town and shoots up some man in front of everyone, and you run out onto the road to collect these like they belong in a museum?''

Jack could sense the anger in her voice.

''Evie...''

''That man is dangerous Jack, you're lucky he didn't want you killed for standing around,'' she continued. ''Damn it, you're gonna get yourself hurt one of these days,''

''It ain't my fault I happened to be standing around,'' Jack defended.

''You ran out onto the road Jack,''

''No one was around, I ain't stupid,'' he groaned. ''Don't go tellin' Forrest,''

Evie gave him a look as if to say of course she wouldn't, she knew Forrest would be furious with him. He was a boy, a stupid young boy doing stupid young things and although it worried Evie, she wouldn't tell Forrest about the bullets.

''Do you need some help with all that?'' Jack asked, looking toward the bags.

Evie grinned at his attempt to soften her. Cricket stood by his friend's side ready to help too, but it wasn't necessary.

''I got it, go on now,'' she shook her head. ''And try not to get yourselves killed,''

* * *

Forrest always came to bed later than Evie. He had many things he needed to check before he retired for the night, a lot that needed to be safely locked away. But Evie had noticed that since she had moved into his room, he had been finishing up earlier than he used to.

That night he managed to walked into the bedroom just before midnight, looking over at the bed to see if Evie was asleep or not. But as usual, she was propped up on her side looking toward him as if she had been holding off on sleep to wait for him.

''You barely keepin' your eyes open,'' he observed as he shut their door and made his way over to kick off his boots.

''Mm,'' she hummed in response.

''Should've gone to sleep,''

''My body didn't give me any choice,'' she yawned, shuffling close to him as she climbed under the blankets.

Forrest's hands reached for her, pulling her body close to his and pressing a kiss to her forehead. Evie loved being in his arms, but tonight she could feel the nerves running through her, his hug unable to shift the tenseness of her body.

Something had happened that she desperately needed to tell him but once she did everything was going to change. Evie didn't know how Forrest would deal with the news, but she had kept it to herself for too long already.

''Forrest,'' she began, checking that he hadn't immediately fallen asleep.

''Yeah?''

''I went in to the doctor today,''

Forrest sat up slightly, concerned.

''What's wrong? You alright?'' he asked worriedly.

''I'm fine,'' she calmed him. ''I just had to check on something to see if I was going crazy or not,''

Forrest's eyebrows creased together in confusion.

''What you mean?''

''Well...turns out I'm pregnant,''


	10. Chapter 10

Forrest reached over and put his hand on Evie's back, doing his best to comfort her as she laid as still as possible in bed, resisting the urge to be sick. There was nothing he could do to make her feel better or make the nausea go away, he was useless and he absolutely hated it.

''How long you meant to feel like this?'' he asked worriedly.

''I don't know, I've never been pregnant before,'' she groaned, squeezing her eyes shut.

Forrest continued rubbing his hand along her back as he watched her try to move around. It had been just over a month since they had found out about the pregnancy and every stage was new and unfamiliar to the both of them. Evie was currently experiencing the worst of her morning sickness and Forrest was making sure she didn't have to lift a finger. It was the least he could do after spending his mornings by her side while she battled through the pain and discomfort.

He never thought he would be a father, and Evie never thought of herself as a mother, but now that it was all really happening, they grew more and more excited every day. Both Evie and Forrest grew up on a farm surrounded by family and although there were plenty of hard times, their parents always tried to give them the best in life and that's just what they wanted to do for their child.

''Maybe I should take you to the doc-''

''I went the other day,'' she snapped. ''You heard him, this is normal,''

Forrest shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't imagine how she felt.

''What can I do?'' he asked quietly.

Evie slowly rolled over to face him, her eyes still shut as she focused on not throwing up before reaching her hand out for him to take. As soon as she felt Forrest's hand in hers she felt a little bit better. He was so gentle, he didn't need to say a word to make her feel better.

''Just stay until I can fall asleep,'' she sighed.

Forrest could do that happily. He kept her hand in his as he brushed hair out of her face carefully. He only tore his eyes away from her when he felt something beneath his fingers, looking down to see the silver ring on her finger, a small sparkling rock in the middle.

Two days after Evie told Forrest she was pregnant, they headed to the registry on their own without saying a word to anyone and became husband and wife. There was no big fuss, there was no gathering or festivities, but it only made it even more special. Forrest always knew she would be the woman he would call his wife one day, and Evie knew there was no one else she would rather spend her life with. They both knew their fate from the moment they fell in love as teenagers, they just lost a few years.

* * *

Although it had been nice and peaceful keeping the news of Evie's pregnancy just between her and Forrest for a few months, when she entered into her fifth month, Evie was glad everyone knew. Clothes were getting tighter to wear, some duties were becoming harder to do and Evie's frustrations could finally be understood. It wasn't hard for everyone to adjust to the news given they knew it would happen one day, and it wasn't surprising that the couple had kept the news to themselves for quite a while.

Forrest knew Evie hated being fussed over, but after everyone had taken notice to her considerably larger stomach, he was relieved that he would no longer be the only person making sure she wasn't overdoing herself.

''Let me take that Evie,'' Jack rushed to her side when he saw her walking down the porch with a crate of vegetables.

''I got it Jack,'' she shook her head.

But Jack had already taken it from her hands, moving it into the kitchen she didn't need to take another step. Evie huffed and put her hands on her hips, her blue button up shirt barely squeezing around her swollen frame, watching as Forrest approached from the barn.

''You got everyone recruited to chase after me, huh?''

Forrest smirked at the unimpressed look on her face. Evie was a stubborn woman, she didn't like taking help off anyone, but she was going to have to get used to it considering Forrest could be equally as stubborn.

''Yes ma'am,'' he nodded, taking the three steps onto the porch to stand in front of her. ''You shouldn't be lifting,''

''I can carry a damn box of vegetables,'' she rolled her eyes.

''Well, now you don't have to,'' he shrugged playfully.

''I'm not a weakling,''

''I ain't doing it 'cause I think you're weak, I'm doing it to take care of you, _both_ of you,'' Forrest explained, glancing down at the bump beneath her clothes.

Evie smiled at his reasoning, unable to find his worries annoying at all when he spoke like that. Over the past few months, the smallest things had changed between her and Forrest and she found herself not wanting to go more than a couple of hours without being at his side. Forrest had always left the violence and harshness of his daily life at the door when he was with Evie, his whole personality changed to a side of him that he only let her see, but now he was more gentle than ever.

Forrest adored Evie even more than he thought possible. She was giving him a child, a family, a future that he never thought he would have. He would do anything for her.

''You're sweet,'' she smiled, reaching up to place her hand on his cheek lovingly. ''But I'm gonna get real bored around here if no one lets me do anything, especially since I'm more than capable,''

''There's plenty for you to do,'' he shook his head as he leaned against the wooden beam.

''Not when you and Maggie make sure I don't have to,'' she pointed out. ''How long you got left?''

''Few more hours,''

Evie pouted her lips and leaned forward against her husband's chest, closing her eyes and she enjoyed his hand beginning to roam over her back. Forrest leaned down to press a kiss to her lips but Evie moved suddenly and instead focused his lips onto hers. Forrest was never comfortable with public displays of affection, but when Evie's soft lips were pressed against his, nothing else registered.

Soon enough Forrest was pulling her closer, feeling her round stomach against his own before heavy footsteps came from the other end of the porch.

''Alright now,'' Howard began, shaking his head at the sight before him. ''Keep it in the bedroom,''

Evie pulled away from Forrest a moment later, his hands still tightly wound around her waist as she looked over his shoulder.

''Evening Howard,'' she greeted with a playful grin.

''Evie,'' he nodded.

It was very clear to Howard now that Evie had no intention on breaking his brother's heart again or ever taking off. They were starting their family here together and he could tell that his brother, who barely showed any sign of emotion other than annoyance, was actually happy.

''You about ready to go?'' Forrest asked his brother.

''I been waitin' on Jack,''

''Jack!'' Forrest called out. ''Come on,''

Evie looked down toward the truck, the back loaded with crates of moonshine ready to be delivered to their loyal customers who had been waiting for more jars. Sometimes she forgot that it was illegal, that the business her husband was running was against the prohibition law, but the whole county depended on it so much that it was almost forgotten by everyone.

''Be careful,'' Evie told them all when Jack finally joined them on the porch.

''Will do,'' Howard huffed as he and his youngest brother made their way over to the truck.

Forrest stayed where he was, his eyes fixated on Evie's as her attention shifted back to his gaze. She didn't want to move from his grip, she wished he could hold her forever.

''You'll be back after dark, won't you?'' Evie sighed, smoothing out the top of his shirt.

''Most likely,'' Forrest nodded. ''Don't go waiting up for me,''

Evie rolled her eyes, both of them knowing that was in fact what she was going to do.

''Just make sure you come back,''

''Always do,''

Forrest gave her a smile and a quick kiss on her lips before walking away. Evie watched the truck drive out the property, already beginning to count down the hours until she could be in his arms again.

* * *

Evie yawned as she looked around at the beautiful day outside, the breeze just enough to cool her down as she sat out on the porch with Maggie. They were peeling some vegetables for dinner, laughing as they spoke about something Howard had done the night before. It was no secret that Maggie and the oldest Bondurant had somewhat of a connection, always flirting playfully when together. But Maggie brushed it off as nonsense, her cheeks blushing red.

''It's not a bad thing,'' Evie assured. ''I see how you two are together,''

''Howard's barely home and he drinks too much, he's just flirting, it don't mean a thing,'' Maggie explained.

''No, he don't drink nearly as much when he's around you,''

''It's nothing,'' Maggie shook her head again, looking up. ''Who's that?''

Evie turned her head to see what Maggie was talking about, noticing a black car driving toward the house. She hadn't seen it around here before, especially not around the station. Whoever it was, they weren't a regular visitor.

Forrest was down in one of the barns working and Evie watched as Cricket hurried down to let him know someone was here. Evie waited for him to appear, worried what was going to happen.

''What's wrong?'' Maggie asked, noticing Evie's expression.

''I don't know,'' she shook her head.

Forrest was never a man to panic, at least never in a way that someone could see. Evie saw the door of the barn swing open and Forrest walked out smoking his cigar, calmly locking up the door behind him and putting on his hat. As he walked toward the house where the car was now parked, Forrest slid his gun into his back pocket.

Both Evie and Maggie stared at the men who stepped out of the car. One was the Marshall, his badge shown clearly on his chest, and one was a tall lanky man with black, slicked back hair and a suit. From just one glance anyone would be able to see he wasn't from here.

Evie knew where he was from. He was a Deputy in Chicago. She had been involved in a few busts he had undertaken at the restraurant where she worked. He was the biggest problem for the people she worked for, he was always finding new ways to block them at every turn.

''Oh hey Forrest,'' the man greeted.

Forrest turned slightly to see Evie and Maggie on the porch, their eyes glued to the situation playing out before them. After one last puff of his cigar, Forrest threw it onto the ground as he turned to the Sheriff, clearly wanting to know what he was doing here.

''This here's the new Special Deputy, been brought in from the city to help us out, make sure things go smooth,'' Sheriff Hodges told him with an uneasy smile.

No one liked getting on Forrest Bondurant's bad side, not even the lawman.

''What things might they be?'' Forrest asked bluntly.

The Special Deputy chuckled to himself, earning himself a look off Forrest that would have frightened anyone else. But the man stayed calm and cool, turning to stare back at Forrest.

''Somethin' amuse you?'' Forrest asked.

''My name is Charlie Rakes, I'm from Chicago,'' he explained in an accent that only made him seem even more foreign.

Forrest had already taken an instant disliking toward the man so he didn't bother acknowledging the words he had just said, turning toward the Sheriff with a blank stare. There was another man sitting the back of the black car, a man he soon found out to be the new attorney, Mason Wardell.

''He wants to work it out so everyone gets to do some business,'' Hodges told him.

The old man in the car tapped on the window, the Sheriff ordering his deputy to see what was the matter as Charlie Rakes moved closer to Forrest. Evie stood up from where she sat on the porch, watching each step the man took, unnerved by the angry expression on her husband's face. Forrest didn't move, didn't gaze to his side to face the man.

''Who the hell is this son of a bitch?'' Forrest asked the Sheriff.

''Me?'' Rakes chimed in. ''I'm the one who's going to make your life real difficult from now on if you don't tow the line country boy,''

As if that remark wasn't enough to piss Forrest off even more, the Special Deputy reached out and poked Forrest in his chest, making a point of being above him, letting Forrest know he was in charge now.

Everyone went silent for a moment as Forrest finally turned to the man, his eyes full of rage and his voice, although kept low, full of threat and viciousness.

''Don't you ever touch me again,'' he warned.

Charlie laughed, stepping back slightly but not looking bothered in the slightest.

''Alright, alright,'' Sheriff Hodges cut in. ''Forrest, it's already settled. The whole county's gonna get on board eventually,''

As the Sheriff began explaining how it was going to work, the price per load they would have to pay to continue dealing, Charlie Rakes moved off to the side and switched his attention from the men to the women on the porch. Evie was staring at the man with daggers, a hand laying over her stomach as if she felt the need to protect her unborn child from the presence of this man.

Maggie glared back at him as well, her hands still working on peeling the vegetables. Rakes seemed to take an interest in them, but he didn't say a word. It was another act to show his power over all of them, an attempt to intimidate. But Evie was furious and refused to give him the pleasure, so she stared back just as he did. Forrest turned when he realized Rakes wasn't around, seeing him watch his wife and Maggie, deciding he was going to end all of this now.

Walking over to Mason Wardell, the man behind his whole scheme, Forrest forced him to wind down the window before he gave his response to the matter.

''You send your clown in the bow tie 'round here again, and I guarantee you'll personally pull a cleaver out his fuckin' skull, understand?''

* * *

 **If you're enjoying, please leave a review!**


	11. Chapter 11

The front door slammed against the wall as Forrest forcefully pushed it open, both Maggie and Evie jumping at the noise as they watched him stride through the restaurant and head toward the stairs. Evie knew what Forrest could get like and how angry he would let himself become, and when that mixed with someone disrespecting and threatening him, it reminded everyone of why he was feared by the whole county.

Standing by the window, Forrest heard the door to the bedroom open and close as Evie walked in. He wanted to watch the black car leave his station and made sure they didn't turn around and come back. It had taken every ounce of control to not shoot that Special Deputy right between his eyes, but if he came back again Forrest knew he wouldn't be so patient.

''Forrest,''

Evie's voice, barely a whisper, broke the silence. Forrest could hear in that one word that she was worried. Scared. She shouldn't have to be, she shouldn't ever have to feel like that here or anywhere so long as Forrest had something to do about it.

''Hey, look at me,''

With Evie's hand gently cupping the side of his face, Forrest's attention moved from the view outside to the woman in front of him. She was looking up at him with eyes full of concern, her thumb beginning to stroke along his skin soothingly. Forrest didn't need to say a word for Evie to know what was going through his mind. She knew how proud he was and how stubborn he could be, but it was always for the right reasons.

''They walk in like they own the goddamn place,'' he muttered angrily.

Evie moved her hands down to his, unfolding his balled up fists and slipping her fingers between his. His whole body was tense, Evie could feel it through his skin. When they were younger and Forrest got into fights with some of the other kids, Evie would find him just like this. Hands balled into fists, teeth gritted together, Forrest would be pacing around unable to say a word.

''They're just trying to scare you,''

Forrest scoffed at the idea.

''Gonna take more than some asshole in a fancy suit to scare me,''

Evie looked up at him with a small smile before it faded back to a worried expression. She knew what Rakes was capable of, she had seen what he had done to people in Chicago. It wasn't lawful, he didn't follow any rules.

''I know that deputy. I saw him a few times when I was in Chicago,'' she told him, watching as his eyebrows drew together with worry. ''I kept my distance, we've never met. But I saw what he did,''

''What do you mean?''

''He doesn't just arrest people, he doesn't throw them in jail, he's not like no lawman I ever knew. I know someone who can't walk anymore because of him,''

''He was looking at you,'' Forrest remembered, his voice low as he anger began to rise again.

''I kept my distance Forrest, I never got involved in what he was interested in,'' she explained. ''Just know he's not gonna be following the law on this,''

''You don't need to worry, you hear? That son of a bitch isn't coming anywhere near you or this place again,'' he promised.

''I ain't worried about me,'' she shoved his shoulder. ''I can take care of myself,''

''Well it ain't just you anymore, is it?'' Forrest reminded, one hand moving down to rest on the side of her stomach. ''And I'll take care of you both,''

* * *

Maggie watched as Evie wiped down the bar for the tenth time that night, another yawn escaping her lips. They were both done for the day, in fact they had been done for a couple of hours now but Evie couldn't bring herself to go upstairs to bed without Forrest being home. The three Bondurant brothers had gone into town to meet with the other sellers and discuss the new arrangement.

''You're gonna go on up to bed soon, aren't you?'' Maggie asked as she pulled on her thick coat.

''Huh? Oh, yeah I will,'' Evie nodded tiredly. ''Just gonna finish up a few more things and then-''

''There's nothing that needs doing, go get some rest, you're barely standing up over there,''

''I won't be long,'' Evie promised, picking up a glass to being wiping over.

Maggie sighed in defeat, knowing Evie wasn't going to get any sort of rest until her husband came home. It was times like these that Maggie was reminded just how similar the couple were. They were both frustratingly stubborn.

''You gotta take care of yourself Evie, and the little one,''

''I know, I'll be in bed soon,''

''You better be,''

''Night Maggie,''

Evie watched the woman walk out into the cold night before getting into her car and driving away. She knew she had to think about more than herself now, how anything she felt wasn't just affecting her but also her unborn child. But ever since their visit from the Sheriff and the new Special Deputy yesterday, Evie found herself on edge every time Forrest left the station.

Rakes didn't work like other deputies, he didn't need a reason to go after someone and make them understand that it was his way or no way at all. Forrest wouldn't listen to him, he would fight back, and that's what terrified her.

* * *

''I don't want to hear it Jack,'' Forrest snapped when the car pulled up outside the house.

''Me and Cricket been tellin' you for months now that we can push-''

''Jack,'' Howard groaned. ''How about you shut up for once about that shit,''

''Well now look what's happening,'' Jack argued. ''You're gonna need another way to get it out,''

Forrest ignored his younger brother and shoved his hands into his pockets, following Howard through the door and into the restaurant. The lights were still on and for a moment Forrest considered that Evie had left them on while she went upstairs to bed, but he soon saw that wasn't the case. Howard slowed his steps and turned to Forrest, nodding over toward Forrest's small office where Evie was seated in his chair, her head resting on top of her arms on his desk, sound asleep.

''I ain't gonna let it go Forrest,'' Jack barged in through the door.

Howard pushed past Forrest and dragged his youngest brother toward the stairs, muttering for him to be quiet.

Forrest quietly walked toward his office, throwing his hat over onto one of the chairs. He always liked watching Evie sleep, it made him feel peaceful, but right now he felt guilty. He knew how much she worried about him and right now he was making decisions that would cause them a whole lot of trouble and even more worry.

Leaning down, Forrest reached out to brush his fingers along her smooth cheeks before her lips began moving, eyes squinting open.

''You're back,'' she mumbled in the middle of a yawn as she sat up.

''I told you not to wait up,''

''How'd it go?'' Evie asked, ignoring his reminder.

Forrest shook his head, looking down and running a hand through his hair. It hadn't gone well. Almost all of the county were on board with the new arrangement, persuaded by the promise of money. Forrest, Howard and Jack had been the only ones to walk away without agreeing to the terms. Forrest stated that Bondurant's didn't lay down for nobody, they weren't going to let this new deputy dictate their life.

It was going to bring trouble and danger and conflict within the county, but Forrest stood by his principles.

''That bad, huh?''

Forrest stood and reached his hand out to hers, helping her stand up and face the idea of walking up the stairs to their bedroom. Evie leaned her head against his shoulder the whole way, her arm wrapped tight around his.

Climbing into bed and melting into the pillows and sheets, Evie watched as Forrest paced around the room. Pulling off his boots, stripping off his shirt, Forrest was doing everything as usual but Evie could see that his mind was a million miles away. The county wasn't on his side, the law was starting to fight him and enemies were beginning to pile up.

''I'm sorry about all this,'' he hung his head low, glancing out the window one last time before making his way over to the bed.

Evie propped herself up on her elbow.

''Forrest...''

''That deputy's gonna cause a lot of trouble around here,'' he continued, moving to lay beside her.

''That deputy is an ass. He was gonna be causing trouble no matter what you said. He's in a new town with a whole lot of power, that's not your fault,''

Forrest moved his arm around Evie's waist, moving to feel her stomach which was growing bigger each day.

''If anything happens to you, it is my fault,''

''Well then it's a good thing nothing is gonna happen to me, okay?'' Evie reached out to cup his face in her hand.

There was a small smile and nod from Forrest in return, his hand finding hers and entwining their fingers. Forrest knew that Evie wasn't going to sit back and let anything happen to her or their child, but she wasn't just the girl he grew up and caused trouble with anymore. She was his wife, the mother of his unborn child, it was his job to protect them from any harm.

* * *

''It ain't stupid,'' Maggie argued with the eldest Bondurant.

''Well it sure as hell ain't smart,'' Howard retorted.

Evie rolled her eyes as she leaned back in her chair, sipping on a glass of cool water as Forrest sharpened his knife beside her. Maggie and Howard bickering playfully was nothing new, but for once Forrest was actually interested in what they were talking about.

Since Evie had entered the sixth month stage, Howard had been making a joke that she might be having twins. Then he started betting on whether the baby would be a boy or girl which happened to spark yet another argument with the red haired woman he enjoyed teasing.

''It's a wives tale, how would you know?'' Maggie folded her arms.

''And how would you?''

''My mother had four kids and swears by it,'' she countered triumphantly. ''So, Evie?''

''I don't even remember your question,'' Evie told her honestly.

''Do you sleep on your left or right?''

Evie took a moment to think, looking over to Forrest who seemed very confused by the whole conversation. Lately there hadn't been a particular sleeping position, whatever was comfortable was goon enough for her. Having a large stomach gave her limited options.

''I...don't know. Why?''

''If you prefer to sleep on your left, it's a boy. Right, it's a girl,'' Maggie explained.

''Bullshit,'' Howard shook his head.

''You just won't accept anything that might prove you wrong,''

''Only thing that has a chance provin' me wrong is that kid, which is definitely a boy,'' Howard shrugged.

Maggie put her hands on her hips and sighed loudly. Howard just smirked in response, amused at the reaction he always managed to get out of her. Evie looked between the two and wondered when they were going to quit playing around and admit their feelings, but every time she brought it up to either of them it was brushed off as nonsense. But everyone could see it, even Forrest had made his comments.

Picking up her glass again, Evie saw that Forrest was almost done with his knife. Soon he would be back out of the farm somewhere working or down in one of the barns. She liked when he came back up to the house to have a break, no matter the excuse.

''Where's Jack?'' she asked, unable to see him around.

Howard laughed, shaking his head.

''Took off earlier on with a full jar,''

Forrest looked up from his knife.

''And where'd he take off to?''

''Church apparently,'' Howard laughed again. ''He's got his eyes on the young Bertha girl,''

''With a full jar?'' Evie joined in. ''Howard why'd you let him go off like that?''

''He was being a pain in the ass, and it's not like it's his first time,''

''You know what Jack's like, he'll humiliate himself,'' Evie shook her head.

''We'll see,''

Forrest waited a moment before turning his attention back to his knife, but Evie could tell he didn't like the situation. Jack may not have been a young child anymore and he may have drank his fair share of moonshine, but Evie couldn't help but worry about the youngest Bondurant.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading, I'd love it if you guys reviewed!**


	12. Chapter 12

It was almost afternoon by the time Jack came stumbling back to the house. Howard and Forrest were out working, but when Evie heard some uneven stomping of feet on the front porch, she knew who it would be. She had already put aside some lunch for him and had been waiting for him to come home in a drunken, embarrassed state. Most of Jack's actions were predictable. He was young boy trying to prove himself and now he had a crush on a sweet young girl, there was bound to be some humiliation.

''Jack?'' Evie called out as she made her way out onto the porch. ''There's some lunch waiting-''

But Jack wasn't in a drunken state. The wobbly steps weren't from too much moonshine but from sheer struggle at keeping his bloody and beaten body upright. Jack was almost unrecognizable. With swollen lips and eyes, gashes in his skin and blood smeared everywhere, it was almost impossible to make out his features.

''Oh my god,'' Evie gasped in panic. ''Jack!''

''Don't...'' Jack shook his head. ''Don't get Forrest,''

Evie waved her hands around worriedly, not knowing where she could hold him or what to do. He looked as if he was going to collapse any second now and before she could even think of Forrest's reaction or to ask what had happened, she needed to see to his wounds.

''Come on,'' she whispered as she pulled his arm over her shoulder to lean on.

Leading him around to the other side of the porch and down a few steps, Evie helped Jack into the washroom outside and sat him down on one of the many wooden crates. Jack winced as his body made contact with the hard surface, but he was quickly relieved to be off his feet. Evie was only gone for a moment as she rushed inside to grab her medical box, sitting on the table before closing the door behind her and sliding a bolt into place to lock it.

Forrest or Howard barging into the room wasn't going to make things any easier and she knew they would only stress Jack out. She had seen the youngest brother disappoint his siblings many times, each beginning with Jack only wanting to prove himself or show that he wasn't a child anymore. He didn't want his brothers to see this too, he didn't need to give them any more reasons to doubt him.

''Jack,'' Evie shook her head as she began to wet a cloth. ''What the hell happened to you?''

Jolting in pain as Evie pressed the cloth to his face to wipe away the blood, Jack's eyes began to spill silent tears. At first Evie thought it was from the pain, but she could see that Jack was ashamed.

''I tried to fight back,'' Jack told her quietly. ''But I couldn't,''

''Who did this Jack? Tell me,''

''That deputy,'' Jack told her, looking into her eyes. ''Fancy suit, gloves...''

''Rakes,'' Evie paused, eyes wide. ''Deputy Rakes did this to you?''

Jack nodded before tilting his head back, feeling a trail of blood running out of his nose. Evie quickly gathered a bunch of tissues to hand him, helping him block the wound. She never thought she would see the youngest brother like this.

Evie had witnessed Howard fight, he usually left people looking like Jack rather than suffering any scars himself. She had seen Forrest in the middle of a brawl too, patched him up many times and could memorize every scar and mark on his body from them all. But Jack had never been in any sort of fight like this. She hated seeing him like this, hated knowing that Rakes had done this to him.

''Don't tell Forrest,'' Jack told her again.

''Jack,'' Evie sighed. ''He's gonna find out somehow,''

''If he sees me like this-''

''He won't. I'm cleanin' you up, aren't I?'' Evie smiled. ''Don't worry Jack he's not gonna be mad at you,''

''He'll find a way,'' Jack shook his head. ''I don't know how you can deal with him sometimes,''

Evie bent down to clean off the blood on Jack's neck before she tossed the material aside and reached for the medical kit again. Two gashes would need to be stitched and sterilized but luckily she had had plenty of practice.

''I remember watching you do this. Forrest would be in a bad mood as usual, but you'd tell him to shut the hell up and deal with it,'' he told her with a small smile, one that looked like it hurt.

''Yeah well, he'd never do it right,'' she chuckled. ''Stitching always too far apart, always end up infected,''

''He got better at it after you left,''

Evie continued cleaning the cut next to Jack's eye as she thought of Forrest sitting alone in his office at night trying to stitch himself up. No matter how much time passed or how happy their lives became, Evie would never forgive herself for leaving.

''I'm sorry,'' Jack spoke when he noticed Evie's silence. ''I didn't mean-''

''Jack, it's fine,'' Evie shook her head. ''I gotta warn you, this ointment ain't gonna feel nice,''

''Can't be worse than what I feel now,''

* * *

Evie watched as Jack came in and sat down at the bar after staying out of sight for a couple of hours. Howard had run into him not long after Evie finished stitching him up and Jack hadn't said a word yet about who had hurt him. Howard had assumed Jack finished off the jar of moonshine he took with him to church and got on someone's nerves, got beaten up right in front of the girl he liked. Jack didn't correct him, he just put up with the comments as usual.

But it was when Forrest came home that Jack's body tensed nervously. Evie looked to Howard with a look that warned him not to make things worse, but it was met with a roll of the eyes. Maggie moved over to pour Howard another cup of coffee, glancing up at Jack in sympathy.

When Forrest walked through the door, he set down the brown bag in his hand and looked toward his youngest brother. Evie moved over to her notepad and continued counting up the money for the week, trying to distance herself from the situation but not wanting to leave the room.

''Alright,'' Forrest sighed, looking at the bruises and swollen lumps all over Jack's face. ''So you want to get into all this racket. But I see you sitting here looking like someone's punching bag. So I ask you, what do you intend to do now?''

Evie's eyes flickered up at the two men.

''What do I intend to do?'' Jack asked.

''Yeah. You,'' Forrest nodded. ''What, do you expect someone else to handle it?''

''I don't need your help,'' Jack muttered.

''Oh you don't? Well here it is,'' Forrest began. ''As long as you are my brother, you will never let this happen again, you understand?''

Maggie looked over from where she was standing, feeling more sorry for Jack than ever.

''What if I can't?'' Jack asked softly. ''I'm not built like you and Howard, I ain't ever been like that,''

''That's alright,'' Forrest shrugged. ''Jack, it is not the violence that sets men apart, alright? It is the distance he's prepared to go. Jack, we are survivors. We control the fear, and without the fear we are all as good as dead,''

Jack paused for a moment and considered his brother's words. But then something else lingered into his thoughts.

''Rakes told me to tell you they're coming for you next,'' he whispered.

Evie's head lifted from the notepad she was scribbling on, her attention immediately going toward the two men. She knew that Rakes wasn't happy with Forrest but he had used Jack as a messenger. A bloodied, beaten messenger. Howard looked over to his brothers too, silent anger in his expression.

''Yeah, well they'll be back, you can be sure of that,'' Forrest nodded, already anticipating the threat.

Then he hoisted the brown bag onto the table and let it slam down in front of Jack.

''From your preacher friend,'' he announced.

Jack couldn't have been more humiliated. He had run out of the church earlier that morning after drinking too much beforehand, leaving his boot in the middle of the room while making a dramatic exit. Howard couldn't help but laugh at his embarrassment.

* * *

Forrest found Evie out on the porch late that evening sipping on a cup of tea as she scribbled into her notepad a list of things she needed to pick up in town. Maggie insisted she go out and sit down for a while and for once Evie didn't argue. All day she had been thinking of Jack's words. _They're coming for you next._

Deputy Rakes had a reputation wherever he went and Evie knew what sort of things he had done to deserve that reputation. He was brutal and dangerous and not at all lawful. If he wanted Forrest's life made difficult, there wasn't much that could stop him.

''You look tired,'' Forrest spoke as he took off his hat, setting it down on the table. ''Why don't you leave that 'til tomorrow?''

''I'm fine, it's gotta be done,'' she assured, looking up at him with a small smile before returning her attention to the notepad.

Forrest watched her hand move across the paper as she jotted things down, but when he glanced up at her face he knew that groceries were the last thing on her mind right now. She heard what Jack said, she knew that Rakes was coming for Forrest and there was nothing she could do about it. If it were anyone else she wouldn't be as worried, she knew that Forrest and Howard knew how to handle these sort of threats, but this Deputy was different.

All their life they had dealt with this sort of thing. People always picked trouble with the Bondurants and they always lost. Evie knew that Forrest couldn't back down or give in, he was a proud and stubborn man. But every time she thought about it, her stomach twisted and turned to the point it made her sick.

''Evie, look at me,'' Forrest moved closer, leaning down in front of her.

Pausing her movements, Evie dropped the pen in her fingers and moved her hand to rub her tired eyes. She didn't know if she was going to be able to have a conversation about this right now. But she turned towards him, her eyes now red, and stared back into Forrest's.

''You ain't gotta worry, alright? Everythin-''

''Don't tell me things are gonna be fine,'' she shook her head. ''I'm not stupid Forrest, don't treat me like I am,''

With a heavy sigh, Forrest hung his head low for a moment.

''I don't want you to be scared of anything happening,''

''Do you know why I would be scared?'' she asked as Forrest stared back at her, listening closely. ''What he done to Jack was nothing compared to what I have seen him do to people. I've seen him shoot two men point blank and walk away laughing,''

''He's not gonna come back here again,'' Forrest assured. ''Me and Howard got it covered,''

''I'm not scared for me Forrest,'' she leaned forward, her head falling into her hands.

Forrest reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling one away from her face and revealing her red, watering eyes. Holding it tight in his own, Forrest pressed a kiss to her hand and held it close to his lips as he watched her reach for him.

''Six months ago I wouldn't be so scared,'' she admit. ''I'd be able to do more, I wouldn't have to worry about my baby not having a father or doing this on my own,''

''I won't let that happen,'' Forrest shook his head, sliding his hand up to rest on her stomach. ''No one's gonna take me away from my family,''

''If anything happens...I can't do it, I don't know how to do it and without you I won't be able to,''

Evie couldn't help the tears running down her cheeks now. She knew this conversation would be emotional since it had been on her mind all day, but for once she told Forrest exactly what she was afraid of.

''Listen to me,'' Forrest began, still holding her hand tight. ''Nothing's gonna happen to me. They'll come looking for trouble and people might get hurt, sure, but I'll be just fine. I'm a Bondurant,''

Evie was chuckling before she even knew it. Forrest used to say that all the time when they were younger and Evie would always groan and roll her eyes. He thought he was indestructible, and this time Evie didn't argue or make any jokes. She just hoped it was true.

 **Please review :)**


	13. Chapter 13

A few days had passed without incident, everyone getting on as normal, until one morning they heard a car driving toward the house. It could have been anyone, someone coming to the restaurant or one of the workers, but Evie had a horrible feeling it was someone unwelcome.

Forrest was sitting out on the porch drinking his cup of coffee as he glared at the car, watching as it came closer and closer.

''Who's that?'' Maggie asked as she stood beside Evie, peering out the window.

The car parked outside the house and two deputy's stepped out, their gaze looking everywhere but at Forrest. There was no sign of Rakes. They were obviously not happy with having to be here, in fact they seemed frightened to take another step. Forrest stared back at them expressionless, waiting for them to state their cause. One of the men pulled out a piece of paper, carefully unfolding it as he moved the tiniest bit closer to where Forrest was sitting. Evie moved closer to the door to listen, Maggie close by her side.

''Forrest Bondurant,'' he began. ''Seems you been involved in certain illegal activities,''

''Illegal activities, huh?'' Forrest nodded in amusement.

''Listen Forrest, you play ball with us and we can make this here summons disappear,'' Deputy Henry offered.

Forrest turned away for a moment, shaking his head slightly in annoyance.

''You tryin' to shake me down Henry?''

''I'm just the messenger here Forrest,''

Then the banging of a door inside took Evie's attention. She spun around in fright, hearing heavy footsteps beating down the hall. Howard had seen their visitors and couldn't wait to have a word with them. The deputy's didn't like dealing with Howard as he tended to become quite violent, but today no one was going to be stopping him.

Maggie was back over by the bar now getting ready to serve more coffee when she saw Howard coming down the hall, a look of madness on his face. Jack was sitting nearby and didn't say a word, knowing that his brother had his intentions set of dealing with the two lawmen outside. Maggie paused what she was doing, coffee pot in her hand as she stood still, unable to say a word.

Evie watched Howard slam the door open, the wooden frame hitting up against the wall with a crack, and noticed that Forrest hadn't move his gaze away from the men. His expression hadn't changed one bit.

''Oh what, you gon' shoot me?'' Howard yelled, marching right up to the men and throwing his fist into each one of their faces.

The two men fell to the ground instantly and as soon as the people inside heard Howard raise his voice, they all rushed toward the windows to peer outside. Jack and Maggie watched wide-eyed out the window next to Evie who instead had an expression on her face that mirrored Forrest's.

''You hurt my brother?'' Howard yelled, kicking the Deputy as he laid in the dirt.

Out the corner of her eye, Evie caught sight of Cricket who had ran over from the barn, grinning at the sight of Howard taking some revenge.

''You trying to intimidate us?'' Howard picked up the man by his shirt before throwing him back down onto the ground.

Maggie gasped in horror as Howard walked over to the gas stand, taking the pump in his hand and shoving it into the face of Deputy Henry. This is when Forrest stood up, but he made no rush to get down to the scene.

''Alright, that's enough now,'' he called out to his older brother.

Howard made no attempt to stop what he was doing, instead he pushed the nozzle of the pump into the Deputy's mouth, ready to choke him. Forrest was close now, hands shoved into his pockets.

''Howard, that's enough,''

Howard looked up at his brother and threw the pump down onto the Deputy, kicking him once again while muttering a few words before walking away. Everyone watched on in silence, wondering what was going to happen next.

''Now ya'll know better than to come 'round here when Howard's been on the whiskey for a few days,'' Forrest told them as they moved around on the ground in pain. ''I think you might wanna get out of here. You give my regards to Special Deputy Rakes,''

Evie watched on as Forrest turned around and grabbed the gun the Deputy had dropped, picking it up and emptying all the bullets before handing it back.

''Ain't nothing personal Henry,''

Forrest stood there in front of the house as the two limping lawmen made their way to the car and sped off, happy to be leaving the Bondurant's property. Howard stood behind Forrest, the look on his face still just as furious as when he first walked out. They wanted Forrest to know that Rakes really was going to make his life difficult if he didn't follow their rules, but he and Howard were not going to give up anything about their business.

And that was the first of many unpleasant visits they were going to receive.

* * *

With the winter months setting in, waking up at 5 am was certainly not something that Evie wanted to be doing. Forrest however was too used to waking up before sunrise which meant strategically and silently making his way out of bed without disturbing his wife who could be quite unpleasant before 6 am, especially now that she was seven months pregnant.

''No,'' Evie moaned, reaching over and wrapped her arms around Forrest. ''Stay,''

''I gotta get to work,'' Forrest told her quietly, still holding her close within his arms.

''It's Sunday,'' she whined again, holding onto him as if he was going to disappear any moment.

''Work still gotta be done,'' he chuckled.

''Sunday is a day to rest, don't do anything, relax and all that,'' she yawned. ''Just stay,''

Forrest had no intention of arguing. Whenever Evie woke up with him it would be the same routine of her coaxing him into laying with her a while longer and it took very little effort to convince Forrest to do so.

Resting her head on Forrest's chest, Evie looked up to see the brown wooden crib in the corner of the room. She enjoying waking up to the sight of it, knowing that in a few short months they would have a child. A child that they knew they would have the moment they fell in love as teenagers. It was the one positive among a life a chaos.

''Mornings won't be so quiet soon,'' she sighed.

''Sure will be different,'' Forrest nodded, his mind running wild with anticipation.

Ever since he was a young boy and his parents passed away from the Spanish Influenza, Forrest had been a father already to his younger brother Jack. When Howard came back from the war as a raging alcoholic, he had become a father to him as well. Taking care of people he loved was nothing new to him, but being an actual father to his child would be completely different.

''Do you uh, think I'll be any good at it?''

Forrest was met with silence as Evie pushed herself up onto her elbow to look at him.

''Good at what? Being a father?'' she asked, watching as Forrest stared back at her worriedly. ''Is that what you're worried about?''

''I'm not worried,'' he clarified. ''I'm just...''

''Scared? I am too. But it's a good scared,'' she smiled. ''I've taken care of children and babies before, but this is _my_ baby, it's different and it's terrifying. But as scared as I am, I want to see if I have a little boy or a girl. If their hair is light or dark, if their eyes are blue or brown, if they're yours or mine, if they smile like you do or like I do,''

''Hopefully they take after their mother more,'' Forrest laughed.

''But they'll be as handsome as their father,''

* * *

Howard pulled on his boots as he sat on the stool by the bar that morning, looking at the trees outside blowing with the cold, harsh wind. Maggie pulled a few mugs off the counter and poured a cup of coffee for both of them, turning back to the stove and checking on the eggs that were sizzling away.

''Everything alright up here?'' she asked him, looking over to the stairs.

''What you mean?''

''Forrest's usually down here by now,''

''I ain't seen the door open all morning,'' Howard shrugged. ''Thank god they keep that thing closed,''

Maggie balanced her cigarette in between her fingers as stirred a teaspoon of sugar into her coffee.

''They're about to be parents, let them have some time to themselves,'' she encouraged. ''Ain't it nice to see your brother happy?''

Howard picked up his coffee and swirled it around in the mug, looking down at the brown liquid and wishing it would have been amber. Through all the years he had been around Forrest, he certainly was happier with Evie now and Howard did think it was nice, but he couldn't help envying his younger brother for that.

''Sure,'' he finally spoke.

Maggie took the eggs from the pan and moved them onto a plate, reaching over and setting it down in front of Howard. Then she sprinkled some salt on top for him, leaning down on the counter as she waited for him to look up at her.

''You'll have that too you know,'' she told him.

''Huh,'' Howard chuckled. ''And who says I want that?''

''Because everyone wants that,'' Maggie shrugged. ''I want that too,''

''You do?'' Howard asked, unable to look away from her.

Maggie stared back at him for a moment before a smile crept onto her lips. No matter how many times she denied it or tried to fight it, she had feelings for this man. And she could tell he felt it too.

''It's a lonely life when you can't say what you want,'' she told him.

''Yeah,'' he agreed, watching as she soon turned back to her work. ''It sure is,''

* * *

''Howard?'' Forrest called out as he stood beside the car.

They were loading up the back with crates full of whiskey and moonshine ready to be delivered to their loyal customers. They had no plans to stop business and the people who had been relying on their liquor weren't prepared to stop buying either.

''Yeah?'' Howard called back from the barn.

''I need you here with me tonight I uh, I got some business with a couple out of towners I've never dealt with before,''

''Where they from?''

''Chicago,''

''Yeah, well me and Danny just gotta stop by a few places first,''

''Just be here by 11, you hear?''

''Alright,'' Howard agreed.

With that, Forrest bid the two men farewell with a nod and a grunt. They would be out all day delivering crates around the county, but Forrest had more work to do around the station and with new customers coming by, he wasn't going to be leaving. New customers or anyone with interest in the Bondurant's business always put Forrest on edge, he suspected them a lot more than anyone else. The trouble with Rakes and the law didn't help that worry either.

* * *

As soon as the two men showed up at the station that night, Evie took an instant disliking toward them. The way they looked at her and Maggie, the way they spoke and puffed their cigars, none of it sat well with her. Evie had worried all evening that they would show up and she would recognize them from Chicago, but thankfully they were strangers to her.

Maggie felt just the same. In fact she disliked them even more than Evie for her own reasons. Whenever Maggie turned her back to tend to the stove, the men would whistle and make remarks that she chose to ignore in hopes not to cause any trouble. Forrest was in his office waiting for Howard to return as he said he would so that they could get on with business, but the clock was quickly ticking closer to 11 and there was still no sign of the eldest brother.

Cricket sat by the window in the restaurant watching for headlights, but so far it seemed pointless.

''You don't need to stay here and listen to them Maggie, I got this,'' Evie offered.

''It's fine,'' Maggie shook her head. ''You shouldn't even be down here, you should be up in bed,''

''Being pregnant doesn't make me bedridden,''

''It will if you don't take a rest,''

''I'm just saying,'' Evie put her hands up in surrender playfully.

''Excuse me darlin', how 'bout that steak I ordered?'' one of the men called out.

Maggie immediately lit up another cigarette and made her way over to the stove, forcing herself to endure their presence for a while longer. Meanwhile Evie made her way over to Forrest's office and walked inside, a heavy sigh escaping her lips and she approached her husband.

''I don't like them,'' Evie told him honestly.

''Yeah, figured they might have been difficult,'' Forrest sat back in his chair.

''Where the hell is Howard?''

''Said he'd be here by 11,'' Forrest shook his head.

Then Cricket was at the door, calling out to Forrest in a voice that gave them no hope that Howard was going to be showing up. Shaking his head as indication, Cricket looked at Forrest sympathetically.

''Alright,'' Forrest sighed in disappointment. ''Tell Maggie to shut it down,''

As Cricket walked away, Evie put on of her hands on Forrest's shoulder and he grabbed it tight in his grip. It wasn't the fact they were going to lose potential customers or they had wasted the whole evening, but Howard had told Forrest he'd be there for him.

''Let go!''

Maggie's scream from the kitchen made both Evie and Forrest rush out the door. One of the men had hold of Maggie's wrist as she clutched at a kitchen knife, swaying it around in defense. Evie felt like going over to the man and throwing him down off his chair, but right now it wasn't an option for her.

''Alright now, that's enough! Go on now, get out of here,'' Forrest yelled as he walked toward the scene.

Maggie grabbed the knife and stood back away from the men as they faced Forrest.

''I paid for another jar,'' the man protested, holding up his bloodied hand. ''And she won't give it,''

Forrest looked over to Maggie and saw she was shaking her head in denial. Evie went to move up to Forrest's side but Cricket, who was standing behind him, held out his hand for her to stay where she was. Everyone could sense trouble.

''No you didn't,'' Forrest corrected.

''We're gonna buy near a hundred gallon of your liquor, now you ain't gonna throw in some extra?'' the man tried to bargain.

''You ain't buying a goddamn thing now go on and get out of here,'' Forrest demanded.

That's when Cricket moved up to Forrest's side and whispered in his ear. Evie watched on in both worry and confusion, looking back over to Maggie who seemed beyond shaken up. Then Forrest looked back at the man with an angry, defensive glare.

''Did you pull a gun on this woman?'' he asked.

That's when the man threw a fist at Forrest and started a violent and messy fight. Forrest grabbed the man's arm as he missed and punched him instead, knocking him back into a table. Cricket grabbed the gun off the floor and scrambled over to him, holding him down as he pointed the weapon at his face.

Forrest used the brass knuckles around his fingers to attack the other man who managed to hit Forrest a few times with his fist. With two heavy and violent hits, Forrest had the next man on the ground too.

The whole time Evie stood back, hands over her mouth in shock and her eyes wide with worry. It had been quite some time since she had witnessed Forrest in a fight and she was realizing all over again just why no one in this county ever wanted to mess with him.

* * *

Shattered glass covered the floor of the restaurant, but that was the least of anyone's concerns. After Forrest dragged the two men outside, they had closed up the restaurant and he had sent Cricket back home. Forrest was silent as he sat at the table in the dining room, but Evie knew he was fuming with anger.

''Maggie alright?'' he asked.

Evie dabbed some ointment on a pad and began cleaning the cut on his eyebrow.

''Yeah, a bit shaken up but I made her some tea,''

''And you?''

''What about me? I didn't just get punched in the face,'' she shook her head.

''Evie,'' he looked up at her seriously.

''I'm okay,'' she assured.

''You ain't,''

''We'll talk about it later, alright?'' she told him. ''I'm gonna walk Maggie out to her car,''

''No, I'll walk her out, I wanna apologize,'' he insisted, standing up and pressing a kiss to her forehead. ''Go on up to bed, I'll be there soon,''

Evie leaned into his kiss for a moment, feeling the rush of exhaustion hitting her all at once. But there was no way she was going to be able to sleep after the night they'd had. But Forrest would be beside her soon enough and everything would feel a little bit better. She hoped.


	14. Chapter 14

After watching Maggie drive out onto the road, Forrest didn't rush back inside. Not only was he angry at his brother for not being there to help him with business, but to deal with two strangers who he knew were going to cause trouble. Maggie had a bruise on her wrist and Forrest had a few cuts and bruises on his face, but everything could have been a lot worse.

Noticing the hood of one of the cars was still up, Forrest wandered over to pull it back down. With the light sprinkle of snow on his shoulders, Forrest looked around at the motor of the car and decided he wasn't going to deal with it right now. All he wanted to do was go upstairs to Evie.

Forrest put his hands on the hood of the car, ready to pull it down, when he felt someone grab hold of his wrists and another wrap their hands around his throat, holding it back. Then Forrest saw the knife and he immediately knew what was going to happen next.

* * *

Evie thought she could deal with the cold empty bed until Forrest came upstairs, but it had been over ten minutes since she pulled the blankets over her body and she still felt freezing. But it wasn't just the cold that stopped her from being able to sleep. It seemed that everything was becoming harder, trouble was becoming constant and it was all being aimed at Forrest. Rakes may not have been there tonight with those men, but Evie knew he had something to do with it.

At the sound of a glass breaking downstairs, Evie shot up in bed, eyes wide and alert. Throwing the blankets off her, she slid out of bed and pulled on Forrest's long brown coat before heading towards the hall. It was only Forrest and Evie in the house tonight, but as she listened in to the footsteps downstairs, she had a feeling they weren't Forrest's. Quietly rushing back into the bedroom, Evie grabbed the shotgun that was hung on the wall beside the bed and shoved four shells into her pocket before heading toward the stairs.

With the loaded gun ready in her arms, Evie walked down the stairs as quietly as she could.

''Forrest?'' she called out when she reached the bottom and turned the corner.

''Look what we've got here,''

The unfamiliar voice came from behind her and Evie spun around with the gun aimed toward whoever it was. It was the same man from earlier, the one that Forrest had beaten to a bloody mess and thrown outside. Evie's heart started beating faster, knowing that they had already ran into Forrest.

''Ain't you pretty,'' he continued, a smirk on his lips and a knife in his hand.

''Don't fuck with me,'' Evie threatened, her finger tapping against the trigger in warning.

As the man stepped closer, Evie moved back, feeling the presence of another man behind her. His movements were quick, a cold sharp blade pressed against Evie's neck in one swift motion.

''Why don't you drop the gun sweetie?'' he whispered in her ear, his voice delighted.

Evie had no choice but to lower the gun down in her arms, drop it to her side and let it crash against the wooden floor. Two men, both incredibly pissed off and both armed with knives that she knew they had no problem using against her.

''Don't touch me,'' she snarled as the man moved closer to her.

Evie's hand went to her stomach, protecting the bump underneath her shirt as if it was going to shield her child from harm. Her hands were trembling with fear, but the fear wasn't for herself. It was for her baby and for her husband.

''What a nice little family it could have been,'' the man in front of her smiled.

''Where is he?'' Evie asked furiously.

''Don't you worry about him darlin', we'll soon take your mind off it,''

The man behind her began to move his hand along Evie's shoulders, his knife slipping away as he reached toward her chest. Evie was disgusted, her hands balling into fists as she stood still, enduring.

When the other man stepped closer to her, Evie couldn't take it anymore. She lifted her knee and kicked him hard between his legs, listening for his knife to hit the ground as he did too. The other intruder behind her spun her around, pinning her against the bar and grabbing her by the throat. Evie pushed back as far as she could, her hand frantically searching for a glass before smashing it against the side of his face.

As the man stumbled and cried in pain, Evie bent down to retrieve the gun on the ground. She barely had it in her grip when the other man grabbed it before her, swinging it around to hit her across the face. Feeling the warm trail of blood trickle down from her eye over her cheek, Evie grabbed the other end of the gun and aimed it toward the ceiling as the man pulled the trigger.

With a hard push, Evie knocked the barrel of the gun into the man's nose and finally seized control. She fired another shot toward the floor by their feet before reloading the gun with the shells in her pocket, closing the barrel and aiming toward the men. That's when they began running toward the door. Evie shot toward them once more but ended up firing into the night sky as they pushed the door open.

Running out onto the porch, Evie watched the men scramble into a car and speed away as she aimed the shotgun toward the vehicle. The sound of shattering glass let her know she had hit them, but still they continued on.

When their lights were out of sight, Evie turned away from the front of the porch and began walking around the side.

''Forrest?'' she called out urgently.

With no response, Evie kept walking. She had done a full lap of the porch around the house and had found no sign of him, but when she heard a noise in the dirt, she took the few steps down onto the ground. The gun dropped from her hands in an instant when she laid her eyes on Forrest.

Laying on the ground in a heap, barely visible from the porch light, Forrest was moving around as best he could with blood flowing out of his neck like a tap. They had cut him from cheek to cheek and left him to die. Evie couldn't feel anything on her body anymore. She didn't know how her feet were moving or how her arms were reaching for him, but she was next to him right away.

''Forrest!'' she screamed in terror. ''No, no, no! Forrest open your eyes! Forrest!''

The love of her life was dying in her arms. Evie couldn't let him go, she refused to have him die. Ripping the bottom of his shirt off, Evie bundled up the material to hold against Forrest's neck to stop the bleeding, but there had already been so much lost.

''I'm g-getting the car, okay? It's gonna be okay Forrest,'' she stuttered, hyperventilating and struggling for air.

The only thing that kept her moving was the fact that if she didn't, Forrest wasn't going to make it.

* * *

 _''Look at me, I'm Forrest Bondurant and I'm indestructible!''_

 _Evie stood on a branch in the large tree, hands on her hips as she made her announcement, dangling one of her legs over the edge for a moment. Forrest stood below her in the grass with a cigarette hanging out his mouth and his focus trained on her movements._

 _''You won't be laughing when you fall and break your goddamn neck,'' he warned, stepping forward to follow her as she moved along the thick branch._

 _''But I'm indestructible, remember?'' she giggled._

 _''Evie,'' Forrest called out as she balanced on one foot again. ''Get down,''_

 _''Oh relax, I ain't gonna fall,''_

 _''I'll relax when you get your ass down here,''_

 _Evie stopped and looked down at him with a mischievous grin. It was as if Forrest could read her mind, his cigarette falling out his mouth as he shook his head in protest. There was no time to argue however as Evie took one step forward and let herself drop into the air. Forrest was already standing below her and held out his arms, catching her perfectly and swiftly._

 _As Forrest stared at her in shock, Evie just laughed in return and wrapped her arms around his neck, moving forward to press a kiss to his lips that lasted almost a minute until she pulled away and stared back at him with an amused grin._

 _''You're a dangerous woman,'' Forrest shook his head, but a smile was on his lips._

 _''Luckily I got a dangerous man to catch me,''_

* * *

Forrest didn't know where he was when he opened his eyes. White walls, white ceiling, white blankets and white pillows. His whole body felt weak, but his throat felt like it was on fire. After making the mistake of swallowing, a movement that made him think there were razor blades going down his throat, everything from the night before came back to him all at once.

Looking to his side, Evie sat in a chair close to his bed, her head laying down on the edge of the blankets and her hand wrapped around his. Forrest inspected the white gown she wore to bed, now stained red from his blood, and her boots which had dirt all over them from where she had dragged him into the car. Of course he remembered none of that, but he did recall hearing her voice calling out to him.

When he moved his fingers slightly, Evie's head moved to stare at his hand in hers. Then she looked straight up at him, searching for a sign that he was finally awake. When Forrest looked at her, he suddenly forgot all about his own pain. Evie's eyes were red and her skin was pale, bruises visible on her neck and jaw, and there were a few stitches above her swollen eye. They had hurt her too.

They could beat him, slit his throat and leave him to die, Forrest would catch up to them and make them pay. He would kill them just as they attempted to kill him, but touch Evie and he would make it torture.

''Mornin' stranger,'' she greeted with a weak smile. ''Never thought I'd see the day the sun was up before you,''

Forrest could hear the cracks in her voice, he could see how close she was to tears and it made him even more frustrated to be confined to this bed. He tried to sit up, he wanted to be closer to her, but the bandages around his neck prevented him from doing so.

''Hey, try and stay still okay?'' Evie gently put her arms on his shoulders, guiding him back down onto the pillow.

Forrest lifted his hand up and cupped Evie's cheek, his thumb smoothing over the swollen corner of her eye just below the stitches. Evie covered his hand with her own and stopped his thumb from moving, shaking her head.

''I'm okay,'' she told him softly, seeing the worry in his eyes that then drifted down to the large bump underneath her blood stained gown. ''So is little one, we're both okay,''

To prove her point, Evie held Forrest's hand to her stomach and let him feel their child moving around. They liked the sound of Forrest's voice, it was like they knew who he was, he knew that was their father. Forrest was mesmerized every time he felt the tiny movements or kicks and right now he was more relieved than ever to feel and know that his family was okay.

''I'm sorry,'' Forrest told her in a croaky, hoarse voice that sounded painful.

''None of this is your fault Forrest,'' Evie shook her head, moving closer. ''I'm the one who was up in bed while you were...I should've come down sooner,''

''You shouldn't have come down at all,''

Evie reached out and ran a hand over his forehead, playing with his hair. He was so pale and tired, he almost looked like a corpse. Forrest watched as her eyes grew watery, a few tears spilling over onto her cheeks as she relived finding him outside the night before.

''I thought I lost you,'' she whispered, sharing these words with only Forrest. ''I thought you were dead. There was so much blood...''

''I'm alright,'' he told her, unable to offer any other comfort right now other than words.

''You can't leave me like that,'' she sniffled. ''I can't lose you again,''

''I ain't going anywhere,'' he assured, lifting his hand up to cup her cheek again. ''Come here,''

Forrest used whatever strength he had left to lift his hand up and cup Evie's cheek again, pulling her close and pressing a kiss to her lips. As painful as the slight movements were, as long as she was there with him right now, he couldn't feel a thing.

* * *

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	15. Chapter 15

''We're gonna find 'em Forrest,'' Jack told his brother, standing at his bedside. ''And I'm gonna be there with you,"

Evie was staring out the window of Forrest's hospital room, listening to Jack's words and shuddering at the thought of Forrest facing the man who did this. It was no surprise to her at all that it was the Bondurant's first response to what had happened. Someone hurt their brother, the only thing that mattered was finding them and getting revenge. Hurting the man who attacked Forrest was an appealing idea to Evie, but she couldn't move her mind that far into the future yet.

What mattered to her right now was making sure Forrest was going to be okay, that he was going to rest and his wound was going to heal. All she wanted was for him to get better, to not see him like this ever again. Eight months ago revenge would have been the only thing on her mind as well, but everything was different now. Her family came before anything else.

''Jack, why don't you shut up a minute, huh?'' Howard advised.

Stepping back from the bedside, Jack closed his mouth and looked down at his brother with worry. As silence overcame them all, Evie turned away from the window and leaned against the wall, arms folded over her bloodied gown. The brothers had already taken their time staring at Evie's condition when they arrived, but it still seemed to stun them every time they looked over and saw the swollen eye and stitches.

Howard was not one for talking in these sorts of moments, instead he hung his head low and nodded to himself. He was furious about what happened, he hated seeing his brother this way. But he also saw the situation for what it was, there was nothing he could do now and just as he turned to walk toward the door, he heard Forrest take a staggered breath to speak.

Forrest looked toward his older brother expressionless, but Howard knew exactly what he felt toward him right now.

''You should've been there Howard,'' Forrest's croaky voice announced.

Howard looked down once again in shame, only looking up to glance over at Evie who was staring back at him with the same look on Forrest's face. They both knew that if Howard was there things would have went a different way. He promised he would be there to help and he had let them both down. Jack stood awkwardly between his brothers as the room remained in silence.

But the moment didn't last long. Howard took one last look over at Evie and back to his brother before hanging his head low again and heading for the door, closing it behind him. Howard knew that Forrest was right. He should have been there for his brother, he should have stopped this from happening, but he didn't.

As Jack stared down at his brother in bed, Evie walked over to his side and put a hand on his shoulder. It was all the comfort she could offer right now, she was beyond exhausted. Forrest looked up at them both with heavy eyelids before they drifted closed, his energy completely drained from saying just a few words.

''I should be goin','' Jack spoke quietly, careful not to disturb Forrest, but he was still awake enough to hear.

''Evie, why don't you go on home?'' Forrest suggested.

''I'm not leaving you here,''

''There's nothing you can do. Go on and get some rest, I ain't goin' anywhere,''

The idea of going home and getting out of this bloodied gown and slipping into bed was more than tempting to Evie, but the idea of Forrest being in here in pain on his own made her want to stay. Being almost eight months pregnant didn't help her exhaustion either and Forrest needed her to take care of herself and their baby more than anything else right now.

Evie moved closer to him, her hand cupping his cheek as he lazily stared back up at her, barely awake.

''I'll be back,'' she promised, pressing a kiss to his forehead. ''Real soon, alright?''

''Mm,'' Forrest ran his finger over her hand.

''Do me a favor while I'm gone though,'' she whispered. ''Get better, you hear me?''

* * *

 _The stars always fascinated Evie, they were so beautiful to look at. Tiny white spots in the sky, all spaced out and sparkling brightly, it always made her feel content and happy when she stared up at them. But even as she laid back against Forrest's chest, sitting between his legs on the roof of their hidden little shack, the stars provided only a small amount of comfort._

 _It was earlier that evening that her brother Phillip announced his enlistment in the war, his departure only a few days away. She couldn't imagine him in the battlefield, dodging bullets and explosives, but mostly she couldn't imagine him ever coming back._

 _''We'll lose the farm without him,'' Evie told Forrest, still staring up into the sky. ''I can see it now. Momma will try and marry me off to some man in the city,''_

 _''That's not gonna happen,'' Forrest shook his head as if it wasn't even an option._

 _''She's already tryin' to get me into all those fancy dresses, keeps saying I gotta think smart about my life,''_

 _Forrest leaned forward and leaned his head against her shoulder. The thought of Evie marrying some man from the city in a fancy suit and tie made him feel ill, he couldn't bare the idea of her leaving town and starting a new life._

 _''Stayin' here ain't smart?'' he asked._

 _''I don't care if it's smart or not,'' Evie shrugged. ''I know they want me to have a good life but I can do that just fine for myself,''_

 _Forrest smiled to himself, knowing Evie would have responded in that way. She wasn't someone that could be told what to do or how to live her life. If someone expected her to do one thing, she would make sure she did the other._

 _They fell back into silence for a moment as a shooting star raced across the sky, both of them noticing it but not saying a word. They enjoyed the quiet, they liked being together without having to say anything or do anything. They could almost read each other's minds, there was no need for words._

 _''Forrest?'' Evie asked quietly after a moment._

 _''Mm,'' he responded sleepily._

 _''You're not gonna leave, are you?''_

 _Forrest pulled a face, wondering why she thought he was going anywhere at all._

 _''Got no plans for it,'' he told her honestly._

 _''Good,'' she yawned, leaning back further into his chest._

 _''Why you askin'?''_

 _''Because I couldn't take it if you did,''_

* * *

Running her finger softly over her stomach, Evie smiled at the movements she could feel beneath. Little kicks against her side could be painful at times, but right now she was more than happy to experience them. The warm evening sun was shining through the window, a light breeze blowing through. She had only woken up a few minutes ago from what she was sure was the deepest and most restful sleep she had in a long time.

Without Forrest by her side, falling asleep should have been difficult, but Evie didn't remember a thing after her head touched the pillow. It was the long hot bath she had taken when she arrived home earlier and the fact that she had been awake for over 24 hours that made rest much easier.

There was slight tap on the bedroom door, Evie looking up to see red hair poking through.

''I didn't wake you did I?'' Maggie asked, knowing the restaurant wasn't the quietest during the day.

''No, constant kicking of my ribs woke me up,'' Evie sighed, looking down at her large stomach.

''I can't imagine what that'd be like,''

Maggie walked over to the bedside table and sat down a tray with a full, warm meal and a cup of tea. Ever since Jack had brought her home earlier, Maggie hadn't been able to get the image of Evie out of her mind. She looked beyond exhausted and the bruises over her face made her stomach uneasy. She kept thinking that if she had stayed longer last night or if she had just served those men their whiskey none of this would have happened.

''Maggie,'' Evie shook her head, an appreciative smile on her face. ''Please don't fuss over me,''

''You gotta get used to accepting some help every now and then. Soon there'll be a little baby crying and you'll be crying too if you stay that stubborn,'' Maggie reminded.

''I'm not stubborn,'' Evie defended firmly. ''I'm just...''

''Stubborn,'' Maggie summed up. ''Now eat something, I know you need it,''

Looking over at the freshly cooked meal, Evie couldn't deny how hungry she was. She hadn't realized just how unwell she had been feeling until she came home. All her attention had been on Forrest, right now she needed to take care of herself.

"He's gonna be okay,'' Maggie told her, knowing her mind was on Forrest.

''Yeah,'' Evie nodded before a smile crept onto her lips. ''You know, when we were kids he used to joke about being indestructible, that he was a Bondurant and nothing was gonna kill him,''

''Well he seems to be sticking by his words,''

''I thought he was dead,'' Evie announced. ''When I found him out there, I was sure of it,''

Maggie reached over and put her hand on Evie's back, a sad look on her face as she imagined what it would have been like to find the man she loved lying on the ground surrounded by his own blood.

''And all I could think of was that boy who used to tell me nothing could kill him, laying in my arms dying,''

''Evie,'' Maggie frowned. ''I'm so sorry,''

''I can't do this without Forrest,''

''You don't have to, he's okay, he's gonna come home to you,'' Maggie assured. ''And it's not just Forrest that's gonna be here for you, okay? We're all gonna be here. I know I'm not going anywhere, I gotta meet that little trouble maker,''

Evie laughed, a hand running over her stomach. Looking down, she knew that this baby was indeed going to be quite a mischievous trouble maker. The child of a rebellious woman and a dangerous man. Who knew what they would be like, but everyone wanted to find out.

* * *

No one had seen Howard since he left the hospital earlier in the day, assuming he had gone off with his no-good friends to indulge in some whiskey as he normally did. But when he walked through the door late that evening, he looked far from intoxicated.

Maggie was wiping down the bar when she turned in fright at the sound of the door swinging open, a relieved sigh escaping her lips as she saw it was Howard. All day she had been on edge waiting for those men to show their faces here again, but they must have known better.

''Where have you been?'' Maggie asked.

''Why's it matter?'' Howard asked with a mumble, pulling out a chair and taking a seat at the bar.

Maggie frowned in annoyance and walked over to the oven where she had been keeping a plate of dinner for him if he happened to show up. She knew that Howard was not in his usual mood, which wasn't exactly pleasant anyway, he was angry at himself. He had made a promise to his brother and he didn't keep it, resulting in everything that happened last night. If he didn't hate himself before, he certainly did now.

''You got people who worry about you too Howard,'' she reminded him as she placed the plate on the counter in front of him.

Howard looked up at her and saw the sincerity in her eyes, knowing that when she said people she was referring to herself as well. He didn't know why Maggie seemed to care about him so much, he felt like he didn't deserve it, he hadn't done anything to prove to her he was worth caring about. For a long time that's exactly how he felt about himself, that he just wasn't worth it.

But Maggie always made sure she was still behind that counter whenever he came home, a warm meal waiting for him. She would stay with him and ask about his day, sometimes she was the only one talking, but Howard liked to listen.

''I should have been here Maggie,'' he admit, resting his head in his hands.

Watching him shake his head in frustration and regret, Maggie moved closer to the counter and reached over to him. She pulled one of his arms down and searched for his hand, holding it gently between her own. Howard looked down at their hands together and then back up at Maggie, wondering why she was doing this.

''I know,'' she began. ''But those men knew what they were doin' before they walked in the door. You being here might have slowed them down, but they were gonna hurt people no matter what,''

''Forrest wouldn't be in hospital if I had been here,'' Howard argued.

''You don't know that,''

''I do, I would have stopped them. But instead, you know what I was doing? Sitting around a fire, drinking my ass off, blind drunk,'' he admit. ''And my brother was getting his throat slit,''

Howard stopped himself from continuing, hearing the clicking of shoes approaching. Evie was standing over by the doorframe, slowing making her way into the room and looking between Maggie and Howard. Their touch broke instantly, Maggie picking up the cloth and beginning to clean the bar again. But Evie was more interested in Howard.

There was so lingering smell of liquor in the air, no bloodstained eyes, no slurred words. Howard was sober. After everything that happened that day, he was completely sober. Evie never thought she would see the day.

''I'm going to the hospital,'' she told them, pulling on her coat.

''I'll drive you,'' Howard offered.

''No, I can drive myself,'' she told him as politely as she could. ''I want to stay with him a while,''

''You shouldn't go alone,'' Maggie insisted.

''I'm only going to the hospital and back, I'll be fine and I'll be careful, okay?''

Neither Maggie or Howard wanted to argue, sensing that she was going alone no matter what they said anyway. With a small smile, Evie walked out the door, leaving Maggie and Howard to awkwardly start up their conversation again. But neither of them said a word.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading, Please review**


	16. Chapter 16

It was well after dark when Evie decided to leave the hospital. Forrest looked only slightly better than he did earlier that morning, but she felt better having just seen him. She lost count of how many times he told her to go home and rest or how many times he would doze off and wake up to say the same thing, drowsy and confused.

Evie just sat by his bed holding his hand, staring up at the bandages wrapped around his throat and hoping he wouldn't have to be in this hospital bed for much longer. Right now this was the best place for him, but it sure was lonely back at the house without him.

''I'll be back in the morning, okay?'' Evie told him, pressing a kiss to his forehead as she ran her fingers through his hair gently.

''I'm gonna be home soon,'' he mumbled tiredly.

''I know,'' she smiled, hopeful.

Forrest squeezed her hand for a moment as if to comfort and reassure her before his eyes fell closed again, slipping back to sleep. Evie watched as his mouth fell open, a slight snore escaping and making her chuckle quietly. Then she was gone.

As she drove away from the hospital, Evie thought of the fact that her comfortable bed was not far away. It was too big for just one person, she found herself lost in the blankets and pillows, and although Forrest was fast asleep somewhere else, Evie knew she would fall straight to sleep. It had been a long day.

Driving through town, Evie glanced over at the hotel Maggie was staying and her foot immediately went for the brakes. Dirt created a cloud around the car as Evie came to an immediate stop in the middle of the road, her eyes drawn to the fancy black car parked out the front. The same black car that had driven down the driveway to the station and started all of this mess.

Rakes had found Maggie. There was no one there to help her, no one Rakes had to go through. Evie's hands were trembling with anger as she managed to park the car outside, just off from the road and blocking the black car in. When she switched off the ignition, she could hear just how loud her heart was beating. It was stupid to go inside but there seemed to be no one else around, Evie had to find out if Maggie was okay.

Climbing out of the car, Evie adjusted the long red dress she was wearing, pulling on a black coat and grabbing a knife. Slipping the blade underneath the sleeve, Evie kept a grip of the weapon as she made her way to the entrance of the hotel. She felt her stomach twisting in knots as she approached the door but kept moving, unable to afford taking her time.

Once she found the main door unlocked, Evie walked inside and marched up the hall quickly to Maggie's room. There was still no one in sight, a fact that made her feel even more worried.

''Maggie!'' Evie called out, knocking on the door loudly.

Twisting the handle, Evie groaned when she found it was locked.

''Maggie, it's me, open up!''

''I'm afraid your friend hasn't come home yet,''

As soon as Evie heard his voice, shivers were sent down her spine in disgust. Rakes appeared standing in the doorway of the room next door, dressed in his usual black suit, staring at Evie as if was just a helpful neighbor.

''Where is she?'' Evie asked in a firm voice.

''I assume still wiping down the tables at your little...restaurant,''

Evie glared at him with a look that could kill, wanting him to see that she was in no mood to play his games. She wasn't intimidated by how coolly he stood there and spoke to her as if nothing else was going on, she didn't care that he had a smirk on his lips.

''You leave her alone,'' she warned.

''It's so nice that you two look out for one another,'' Rakes took a step out of his room, a chuckle escaping his lips. ''After all, you wouldn't want everyone around here knowing who you either of you used to be,''

The blade was beginning to cut Evie's hand with how tight she was gripping it.

''Your smile really shows how oblivious you are,'' Evie told him with a forced grin. ''If you think you know who I used to be then you should know I haven't changed at all, and I don't take kindly to cowards who get others to do their dirty work,''

Rakes stepped closer then, making Evie move back against the wall. Everything about him made her uncomfortable. His walk, his smile, his voice, his smell. There was nothing about this man that gave off any feeling other than disgust.

''You wouldn't be threatening me,'' he spoke softly. ''Not in your delicate condition, now would you?''

''Could you really sink any lower?''

''You'd be surprised what I can do,''

Just before Evie's back made contact with the wall behind her, she slipped the knife from her sleeve and into her hand, pulling the blade up to push against the man's neck.

''I could surprise you too,''

Evie added pressure to the blade, forcing it against his skin until she managed to get him stepping back toward his room. With a grin still on his lips, eyes still on Evie's, Rakes cooperated. When his back hit the door, Rakes laughed to himself and stepped inside, turning to look at her once more.

''Get home safe. Oh, and give my regards to Forrest, won't you?''

* * *

Evie had driven as fast as she could back to the station, hoping to catch Maggie before she left to go back to the hotel. The thought of her friend living in a room beside Rakes made her feel sick, she couldn't let Maggie get any more involved in this mess. Rakes remembered Maggie and Evie knew she came here to get away from the city, there was no way she was going to let that man ruin her life here.

When Evie made it back to the station, the lights were still on inside the restaurant and Maggie's car was parked outside where it had been all day. A wave of relief washed over Evie as she stopped the car, leaning against the steering wheel for a minute to catch her breath.

Maggie was sitting on a stool beside Howard against the bar when Evie walked in, turning with a laugh and smiling. They had obviously been down here all evening talking with one another, keeping each other company.

''About time, I was about to take the rest of that apple pie if you didn't show up soon,'' Maggie giggled, pushing away the empty plate in front of her.

''You're gonna stay here tonight,'' Evie told her with a nod. ''And tomorrow we're going to get your stuff from that hotel,''

The amusement drained from Maggie's face and Howard's too, both looking toward Evie with worry.

''What happened?'' Howard asked.

''Did you know that new Deputy was staying there?''

Maggie went silent for a moment, remembering a brief and unpleasant run in with the man a few weeks ago. She didn't think anything into it since he was questioning her about being a dancer back in Chicago, it was too embarrassing to admit to them. She didn't want to get back into that part of her life, that's why she came here in the first place.

''I saw him a while ago,'' Maggie nodded.

''You can't stay there,'' Evie insisted. ''It's not safe, I'm not gonna risk him hurting you,''

''How'd you know he was there?'' Howard asked Evie.

''I saw his car out front,'' she explained coolly.

''I can take care of myself, I don't need to be bargin' in on all of you here,''

''You ain't barging in,'' Howard shook his head. ''You're welcome here, you know that,''

Evie looked over to Howard with a nod before locking the door behind her.

''So it's settled, alright?''

Maggie had no chance to object, and she didn't want to anyway. Staying at that hotel was lonely, but she dealt with it. She felt much more at home here at the station surrounded by these people that had taken her in as family, she would rather stay here any day.

''Alright,''

* * *

Forrest had been home for a week now and although doctors assured Evie he was recovering perfectly, she still felt the need to monitor his stitches at every chance she had. Everyone could see Evie's mothering instincts showing as she made sure her husband was only on light duties around the place, Howard and Jack already attending to Forrest's daily duties.

''I thought I was havin' a meal, not a check up,'' Forrest leaned back in his chair, putting down his fork and ignoring his lunch for a moment.

Evie's hands tilted his head back slightly, pressing a damp piece of material against his stitches. Where Forrest's concern was popping a few stitches and bleeding out, Evie's worries were infection. Every few hours she would dab antibiotic ointment along his neck, no matter what he did in protest.

''Oh quit whining,'' she shook her head, hitting his shoulder. ''It could be a whole lot worse,''

Forrest couldn't help the grin on his lips. Evie's eyebrows always pulled together whenever she was cranky or frustrated, but Forrest could never be threatened or frightened by it, it was more adorable than anything else. And Forrest grinning only made her even crankier.

''I suppose there could be worse things to be looking at,'' he joked, a grin on his lips as he waited for Evie's expression to soften.

Which it did.

''Don't go trying to distract me,'' Evie warned, fighting off a smirk as she poured more ointment onto the cloth. ''Won't work,''

''That so?'' Forrest asked, his hand reaching out to grab the back of her leg.

Evie let out a small squeal of surprise before hitting Forrest's shoulder again a few times, but that cranky look on her face was long gone. A few people turned in their seat to see what the noise was about but only saw Forrest laughing to himself, looking down at the table and Evie beside him turning red. Maggie observed the moment from where she stood behind the bar and chuckled to herself.

Then her attention was taken by Howard who came into the restaurant looking like he was fighting for breath and looking around the room. Setting down the glasses she was holding, Maggie hurried over to him as he stood there staring at his brother.

''Howard,'' she spoke worriedly. ''What's wrong?''

Howard looked down at her and then back at Forrest, wondering if he should go over and tell him what was happening. He was going to be furious.

''We got a problem,''

* * *

As soon as they heard the car approaching from down the long drive way, no one had said a word. Not that conversation was booming before that, but now there was tension, anticipation. The car had been loaded with crates of moonshine for a while now, but without Forrest they hadn't journeyed over the county line for a week now. But Jack, always so eager to prove his brothers wrong about his maturity and capability, took the car across in hopes of selling to the one and only Floyd Banner.

Forrest was staring down the road with an icy glare, one that made Evie nervous for what was going to happen when Jack actually made it to the house. Howard sat on a bench on the other side of the door where Maggie stood, arms folded as she silently awaited the fallout.

They could all see Jack's desperation to argue his side of what was going on, immediately jumping out of the car when it pulled up in a cloud of dust.

''Now hold on Forrest, hear me out,'' he looked toward his brother, taking a few steps toward the porch with a bag in his hand. ''I sold the whole lot to Floyd Banner in one damn go. It would have taken you a month to offload that. Not only that, but I sold it for twice what you get. Right here is two thousand dollars,''

Jack undid the bag and dropped numerous wads of money down on the porch, showing them all what he managed to get.

''Minus my commission,'' he added.

Howard stared at the pile of money, standing up and looking between his two brothers, unsure of what to say. Evie knew that Jack was capable of much more than his brothers thought for his age, but not even Evie thought he would come back with this much money. She wasn't even confident he would come back in one piece.

''Well look at you,'' Forrest spoke in a low voice. ''Think you're so goddamn smart, huh? Going around like your Al Capone, with your new best friend. Well take a good look Jack, that's your new best friend,''

Jack watched as Forrest pointed toward his throat which was covered in stitches.

''You're wrong about that too,'' Jack shook his head. ''Special Deputy Rakes is the one who hired them men to do that to you,''

''Who told you that?''

''Floyd Banner himself,''

''Oh Floyd Banner himself,'' Forrest exclaimed sarcastically. ''Well that must be gospel,''

Jack held out a piece of paper then for his brother to take.

''What's that?''

''It's a gift from Floyd Banner. It's an address Forrest, for them bastards who cut your throat. I say we get 'em tonight,''

Forrest stared back at his brother and didn't say a word, knowing that if that was indeed an address to the men who attacked him, he very much wanted it. Finding them had been on his mind ever since waking up in hospital. Evie turned her gaze from Jack to Forrest, seeing the interest in his eyes. She wasn't going to protest about them going after these men, she wanted revenge on them too, but she worried what Forrest would do.

Jack stepped up onto the porch and sat the piece of paper on Forrest's shoulder.

''Anything else I can do for you Forrest? Sweep the fuckin' floors maybe?'' he remarked before walking inside. ''I got somewhere I need to be,''

Forrest's jaw tightened in anger as he reached up and grabbed the paper, looking down to see an address. They would go after them tonight, but Jack wouldn't be with them. This was for him and Howard to sort out.

* * *

 **Hey guys, thanks for reading. Also if you could leave a review I would appreciate it!**

 **Also I'm having mixed thoughts on whether Evie and Forrest's baby should be a boy or girl, so let me know what you think!**


	17. Chapter 17

Leaning back against the pillows on the bed, Evie watched Forrest move around the room from corner to corner searching for the many weapons he had hidden all over the place and sliding a few knives into his back pocket. Howard paced outside in the hall waiting for his brother, hoping that Jack wouldn't come home and see them leaving without him. It wasn't a pleasant thought imagining what the two brothers were going to do once they found the men who attacked Forrest the other night, but Evie knew this was something that had to happen.

Rakes hired these men to come here into their home and kill Forrest, Evie had no sympathy for them. If they were willing to kill, they should be ready for retaliation from their victims. This was how things worked, everyone knew the unspoken rules and risks.

Forrest looked over his shoulder once again and began to shake his head, searching through a box full of bullets, trying to find the ones he would need.

''Evie,'' he sighed. ''No use staring at me, I'm doing this,''

''I didn't say a word,'' Evie threw her hands up before returning them to rest on top of her stomach.

''You don't have to, I know what you're thinkin',''

''Then you know I'm just worrying and as your very pregnant wife I'd say that I'm more than allowed to do that,'' she defended.

Turning with a slight groan, Forrest made his way over to the side of the bed, slipping a belt through the loops in his pants. Evie watched as his eyes moved back and forth between her, the large bump beneath her shirt and out the window at Howard starting up the car. The last thing she wanted to do right now was make him feel guilty. After all he had been through, he didn't need any more inner conflict.

''I just worry about you,'' Evie told him, reaching out to put her hand on his leg. ''I always do,''

''I don't like you worryin' about me. Few hours I'll be back, ain't nothin' gonna happen to me,'' he explained, pulling on his cardigan.

''But these men almost killed you, at least let me worry about that,'' she told him.

There was a long pause of silence between them that was broken by Howard honking the horn outside. They only had a limited window in case Jack came home and they wanted this done tonight, Forrest had to go.

''Come here,'' Evie told him as she stood up, pulling him into a tight hug.

Forrest maneuvered himself around her swollen stomach, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. If anyone else saw him right now, he was sure the illusion of the kind of man he was would fade away. But with Evie he could be as gentle and real as he wanted. There was no violence in his touch, no anger in his voice, nothing that he would be associated with outside of this room.

''I'll be back soon,'' he assured, trying to soothe the worries in her mind.

''Not soon enough,''

* * *

Evie had wandered downstairs in her nightgown just in time for Maggie to begin serving out the leftover apple pie from dinner. It was just the two of them in the house, the sound of the cool wind blowing outside and the crackly radio playing softly in the corner. Maggie was nice company at any time of the day, but late at night when all of the boys were gone, they could relax together in peace.

Maggie living at the station now seemed to work out for everyone. Howard didn't have to worry about her being all the way in town with Rakes around, Maggie didn't have to make the commute each day and her and Evie took control of the whole restaurant and household. Maggie was part of their family now.

''I thought you would have put up a fight against them going,'' Maggie admit, pulling out a stool to sit on beside Evie.

''I worry less when Forrest has Howard,'' Evie shrugged, sticking her fork into the pie.

''You ain't worried then?''

''Oh I'm worried. But me and Forrest, we're one in the same. If someone had cut my throat, I'd be going after them without a second thought,'' Evie explained. ''There's no point arguing against something I agree with,''

Maggie smiled and took a bite of the pie.

''You two _are_ alike, you got that right,'' she chuckled. ''I can't imagine what this little one's gonna be like,''

''Hopefully smarter than both of us,'' Evie looked down at her stomach with an admiring glance. ''I don't want them to be like us, I want them to be better than that,''

''Evie, you and Forrest aren't bad people,''

''But we've done a lot of bad things. I know that's part of life, but I don't want that to be their life,'' she told Maggie, rubbing her hand over her stomach, feeling movements beneath her touch. ''I want them to be happy, healthy and safe. I want their life to be everything me and Forrest's wanted our lives to be,''

Maggie took a sip of her warm coffee, grinning at the way Evie spoke of her unborn child, hearing the excitement in her voice for her future. But she spoke as if her and Forrest weren't worthy of being parents. They had both done terrible things in their life, but they were far from bad people. Family was everything to Forrest as it was to Evie.

''Life ain't ever easy Evie,'' Maggie told her with a long sigh. ''But there are certain peaks throughout everyone's life, a certain point where everything is perfect and everything you've done before that point seems worth it and you wouldn't change a thing. I'm sure you've have those peaks before and real soon you'll have another, and that's what life's about. You and Forrest are gonna have a little person who's gonna be in your life forever and you'll have those perfect moments all the time,''

Evie looked over at her friend with a genuine smile, closing her eyes for just a moment to imagine the life they would have soon. Everything was going to change and she had no idea what was going to happen, but she was excited for it. All she wanted now was for all of this mess to be over. No more Rakes, no more problems with the law, no more danger.

But that wasn't going to happen. There was always going to be danger in their lives and problems were unavoidable, but Evie couldn't let herself focus on them anymore. Right now she just wanted Forrest to be home in one piece, uninjured and by her side.

''That means a lot Maggie,'' Evie told her friend.

''Forrest?'' Jack's booming voice came from the hall, door swinging shut behind him. ''I got my new car,''

Jack walked into the restaurant looking like a new man. A fancy suit and hat, a cigarette hanging off his lips and a satisfied grin on his face that seemed as if there was no wiping it off.

''What'd you think?'' he asked them both.

''Very nice,'' Maggie smiled.

''You look too grown up,'' Evie shook her head. ''But it's handsome,''

Jack smiled and slipped in hand into his pocket, looking around the dark and empty room.

''Where's Forrest?''

Evie and Maggie both fell silent in response, looking at him with the answer he knew was coming.

''They go without me?'' he asked. ''Goddammit,''

''Jack,'' Evie called out as he rushed down the hall again. ''Jack!''

* * *

In the past few weeks, Evie had learned that her body just couldn't make it staying up all night anymore. Normally Evie would wait downstairs until Forrest came home, busying herself in the restaurant by cleaning or adjusting the shelves, but tonight she could barely keep her eyes open. Without Forrest sleeping was always a struggle, especially knowing that he was out there doing something as dangerous and worrying as finding the men who attacked him.

It was the early hours of the morning when Evie jolted awake, the sound of the bedroom door clicking shut just loud enough to register her senses. Forrest saw her head turn, searching for him in the darkness. He cursed himself for not being quieter, moving over to his side of the bed and sliding under the covers.

The feeling of a soft bed and pillow beneath him made him let out a long, relieved and satisfied sigh. It had been a long night. A long, gruesome, successful night. Those men were never going to be a threat to his family ever again. It was impossible, he and Howard made sure of it.

''Forrest,'' a quiet voice called to him.

Rolling onto his side, Forrest looked at his wife's soft face, illuminated by the moon outside their window, and took a moment to appreciate what he was able to come home to every night. There wasn't a women he had ever known who would put up with what she had. She understood him as if their minds were one, she trusted him more than he did himself. There was nothing he wouldn't do for her.

''Go back to sleep,'' he whispered, reaching out to run his thumb over her cheek.

Evie captured his hand, pulling it to her lips and pressing a kiss to his skin. Forrest felt his chest tighten as she held his hand to her chest, clinging to him as if to assure herself he was there, he was home. Evie could smell soap on his skin from where he had washed himself before coming upstairs. She didn't want to know what he had to wash off himself or what he had done, she just didn't want to think about it.

''You're cold,'' she mumbled tiredly, moving as close as she could to him, sliding her hands under his shirt to warm his chest.

Forrest shivered at her touch before settling into it, snaking one arm beneath her head and the other over her body. She was wrapped in him completely and maybe now they would be to sleep, to be at peace. As in between consciousness as she was, Evie still remembered Maggie's words from earlier on in the night and knew that right now was one of those perfect moments.

''Go to sleep, I'm not goin' nowhere,''

* * *

The next few days at the station were unlike usual. Jack was the one who had been taking the Bondurant's car and crossing the county line with Cricket, selling moonshine to Floyd Banner on what seemed to be a regular basis. Banner had asked Jack to bring him as much liquor as he could, whenever he could, and he was always paid very generously. Jack felt like he had finally proven himself to his brothers and the whole county, even managing to take Bertha's attention.

Forrest had said nothing about the new arrangement. He had let Jack become involved after all these years and he was now letting him take on the biggest responsibility. Floyd Banner wasn't a man that Forrest trusted, but as long as he paid Jack like he was and caused no trouble, it would be good enough for now. The Bondurant's business was always controlled by Forrest and Howard, it was an uneasy feeling letting Jack take on so much. But there was no stepping in now, not when it seemed to be going so well.

''Jack going back this afternoon?'' Evie asked, standing out on the porch balancing a small plate in her hand as she snacked on another pie of Maggie's apple pie.

''Looks like it,'' Forrest nodded, scribbling something down in the thick notepad where he kept track of all their sales and agreements.

''How is he getting over the line so easily?''

''Banner's got some deal apparently,'' Forrest shook his head, closing the book and leaning back in his chair. ''Jack don't say much about it, thinks he got the whole thing sorted,''

''I just hope he's being careful. I don't like that Banner fellow,'' Evie admit, scraping the rest of the pastry off her plate.

''No point telling Jack that, it's all gone to his damn head,'' Forrest sighed.

Evie sat the plate down on the table and walked further out on the porch, looking around at the sunny winter day. It seemed like things were settling down, but there was always the thought and threat of Rakes. The men he had hired to kill Forrest were dead and he knew the Bondurant's had found them, but he done nothing yet. It had been four days and his shiny black car hadn't made a single appearance at the station. It wasn't that Evie was complaining about his lack of retaliation, but it made her uneasy waiting for it.

* * *

Howard looked down at the glass in front of him on the bar, an inch of amber liquid swimming at the bottom. Sleeping was never easy for the oldest Bondurant, especially after returning from the war. Without drinking at least a bottle of liquor, there was no point in him walking up those stairs to even attempt sleep. Maggie usually sat with him for a while as she cleaned up the restaurant, taking her time so she could talk to him a while longer. But tonight he had come in late from working at the station all day and he found himself missing the red haired woman.

When he heard footsteps from the stairs, he turned hoping Maggie saw the lights on and decided to join him, but it was Evie who approached with a tired yawn and a hand rubbing the bottom of her back.

''What the hell you doin' awake?'' he asked, surprised to see her this late.

''I need water,'' she groaned.

''You look like you need somethin' stronger than a glass of water,'' he admit, taking a sip of his drink.

''Well Howard, when you have a nine month old baby kicking you all day and making everything you do a two hour task, you'll look just as bad,'' she huffed, filling a glass with water an immediately taking a mouthful.

Howard couldn't help his laugh, amused at how irritable she was. Evie and Jack were always easy to annoy with a simple comment, they were so quick to start defending themselves and only became angrier whenever Howard laughed in response.

''Don't make me waste this by throwing it on your face,'' Evie warned. ''What are you doin' down here so late anyway?''

''I just like the peace a quiet,'' he shrugged, finishing the last of the liquor.

Evie leaned forward onto the bar, yawning once again as she stretched her aching back. She could see Howard's glance moving toward the stairs and then back at the empty glass, understanding why he seemed to be slightly down. Howard was never someone who radiated happiness and joy, but when he was quiet like this and on his own late at night, there was usually something on his mind.

''You two dance around each other so blindly,'' she shook her head.

''What you talkin' about?'' he asked, pouring some more liquor into his glass.

''You know what I'm talking about,'' she rolled her eyes. ''All you gotta do is take her somewhere nice, just the two of you. All she does is work, take her out away from the town, do somethin' nice,''

''Maggie? Oh come on,'' Howard shook his head.

''What? You think she wants something more than that?''

''She deserves more than that,'' he stated, setting his glass back down.

Evie sighed, reaching out to grab his hand.

''Howard, look at me,'' she demanded. ''You think Maggie would laugh as much without you around? Think she'd stay up and make sure you had a warm meal to come home to, sit with you all night and wait for you to come back again that evening for no reason?''

Howard stared back at Evie without saying a word, taking in everything she was saying. But in his eyes Maggie deserved so much more than him, she deserved someone who could get her out of this place. Thinking to himself, Howard was about to put aside his denial and ask Evie what to do when he felt a sting in his palm.

Evie was gripping Howard's hand so tight that her nails were beginning to draw blood as her heart began pounding in her chest. The glass of water in her other hand was instantly forgotten, slipping to the floor and shattering immediately.

''Evie?'' Howard asked in a panicked voice, wondering what was happening as she continued to grip his hand.

A painful groan escaped Evie's mouth as she bit down on her lip, her whole body beginning to react to a pain she didn't even know existed. It was overwhelming, excruciating and she had never been so terrified in her life.

''Evie you gotta tell me what the hell is goin' on,'' Howard begged.

''Forrest,'' Evie told him in an uneasy, pained breath. ''I need Forrest,''


	18. Chapter 18

Six hours felt like three weeks to Evie. The amount of pain she went through, the level of exhaustion she was feeling, it was like she couldn't remember the last time she wasn't laying in a hospital bed. Evie hated crying in front of people, but today she didn't care about any of that. She had cried for hours, she had begged the nurses to make it stop and for the first time in her life she felt like she really couldn't make it through something.

But she would do it all over again. All she had to do was look down at the perfection in her arms and she knew she would do it all over without a second thought. She was now a mother, Forrest was a father, and they had themselves a beautiful baby girl.

''She's so small,'' Evie smiled, gently brushing a finger over the baby's soft cheeks.

''She looks like you,'' Forrest grinned, standing right at Evie's side, a hand cradling his daughter's head.

''How can you tell, she's so tiny, all I know is she's perfect,''

''She sure is,'' he agreed completely, pressing a kiss to his wife's forehead.

Evie looked up at him with a loving gaze, proud that they had made something so perfect together. Forrest couldn't take his eyes off the baby girl, his heart swelling with love for his child.

''Here,'' Evie offered, moving her arms to pass their daughter into his.

''Uh...I-''

''Just hold her like I am,'' Evie instructed gently.

Taking the fragile bundle into his arms, Forrest moved his hands to look exactly as Evie's had, making sure not to harm his daughter in the slightest. She felt so light in his arms, but so heavy at the same time. It was as if he was holding the most precious thing in to the world, which to him, she was. Forrest had no idea what becoming a father would change about him, for months he didn't know what to expect or to prepare for. But it was clear now that nothing would prepare him for this. It had only been a short time since she had been born, but Forrest already knew that he would do anything for his daughter.

Nothing and no one was going to hurt her as long as his heart was beating. She would grow up safe and loved, there would be no danger in her life and he was going to make sure of it.

''We need a name for her,'' Evie reminded. ''We never picked one,''

''What do you think?'' Forrest asked, unable to tear his gaze away.

''I was thinking...Annabelle,'' she suggested.

''Annabelle,'' Forrest repeated, surprised by how much he seemed to like it. ''Where'd you get that?''

''I heard it around a while ago, I always thought it was a nice name,''

It was. It suited the little girl perfectly. When they looked her, they saw the most innocent and fragile human in their world, they saw hope and happiness. Forrest had done a lot of terrible things in his life, but when he was looking down at the baby in his arms, it was hard to believe that terrible things even existed in a world where she was.

When Maggie, Howard and Jack came into the room a few hours later, all of them had a pleasant and calm smile on their face. Nothing about what they had done in the past few days even registered to them, right now it was all about this tiny human who was now part of their family. The moment all of their eyes locked on to little Annabelle, they knew she was going to come first from now on.

''Can I hold her?'' Maggie asked, looking to the baby in awe and excitement.

Evie leaned forward to pass her daughter on to Maggie, watching as she continued to sleep peacefully even with all of the attention directed toward her. Maggie's heart swelled with love as she looked down at the baby, a few tears gathering in her eyes.

''What's her name?'' Jack asked in a quiet voice, afraid he'd wake her.

''Annabelle,'' Forrest answered proudly.

''Annabelle Rose Bondurant,'' Evie announced, reaching out to Forrest's hand which rested on her shoulder.

''Hi Annabelle,'' Maggie cooed. ''She's beautiful,''

Turning to the one person who had yet to say a word, Maggie looked up at Howard with a smile and extended her arms for him to take the baby into his own. Although he had been just as taken with Annabelle as the others, Howard was uneasy about holding her. She looked so delicate and breakable, he didn't want to hurt her.

''I don't think I should,'' he shook his head.

''Howard, she's your niece,'' Maggie reminded. ''Here,''

Assisting him with his arms, Maggie showed Howard how to hold the baby just as Evie had shown Forrest. Annabelle squirmed slightly throughout the exchange, but she remained sleeping quietly like an angel in her uncle's arms.

Evie knew that this moment right now was one of those that would be cherished forever. Their child was meeting their family, what was left of her parent's family anyway, and they were all falling in love with her just as she did. It was now that she remembered just how much she missed her own parents, wishing they could have been here to meet her daughter, that they could see the life she built with Forrest now.

* * *

When Evie woke up in the morning, she was used to seeing the other side of the bed empty. Forrest woke up earlier than the sun rose and began his work around the station, but this morning he was missing from bed for another reason. Annabelle's cries had woke both of the new parents, but Forrest was always much faster moving so early in the morning, leaving Evie to sit up with a yawn and look over at the wooden crib in the corner.

Watching Forrest reach in to pick up their daughter so carefully and gently made her feel warm and whole, a content and blissful smile on her lips as she observed the sweet moment.

''Look at that,'' Evie sighed when the baby's cries softened. ''Just wanted to be held,''

Forrest moved his arms in the slightest rocking motion to ease his daughter's tears, watching as her eyes fluttered closed and her little noises ceased. It amazed him how such a small act could soothe the baby, the fact that she enjoyed being in his arms made him happier than he could admit. When he looked up at Evie he noticed her eyes were filling with tears, small droplets falling down her cheek silently.

At first he began to worry, but Evie saw his concern and shook her head, waving it off. There was a smile on her lips after all, she was just too happy. All of her emotions had been a whirlwind during the past few days and it clearly hadn't gone away yet. Evie wasn't much of a crier, but lately just the slightest thing could make her a tearful wreck.

''I feel different now she's here,'' Evie admit as Forrest softly sat back down on the bed, moving to lean back onto the pillows.

Every move he made was thought out and careful, his daughter sleeping peacefully once again in his arms.

''It's like I only wake up for her, you know? Everything I do is so she'll be okay,''

''I know,'' Forrest nodded, completely understanding what she meant.

Evie leaned closer to Forrest and pressed a soft kiss to his bare shoulder. She could see every scar on his chest, right next to their sleeping daughter. Just the sight of the faded scars reminded Evie of the life her baby was now part of. Unpredictable danger, grudges and legends. Everyone in this county knew who the Bondurant's were and what they were capable of, and now Annabelle was one of them.

There was no way in the world that Annabelle would ever get hurt as long as Evie and Forrest were alive. They would die before any harm came to their child, but harm was always going to come to the family. Especially with Rakes still around.

Evie hated that those thoughts had ruined her morning, but as soon as her gaze went back to her daughter, everyone could be forgotten for that moment. But it was never gone from her mind.

* * *

''Shh,'' Evie whispered softly to her daughter, rubbing her back gently.

Annabelle had woken early that morning hungry and craving attention from her parents. Forrest, as usual, was the first awake to the cries of the baby. Evie insisted she would take her downstairs to sit near the warm fire that Forrest had stocked up the night before, cuddled into her mothers arms where she would eventually settle after feeding.

''Feel better little one? You were hungry weren't you?'' Evie smiled, running her finger over Annabelle's button nose. ''Daddy will be here soon. I bet he's not even sleeping without us up there,''

From behind the chair where Evie said, Maggie let out a sneeze that just couldn't be stopped. Not only did it startle Evie, but Annabelle's eyes opened suddenly and her little whines began again, this time she was crying to sleep.

''I'm so sorry!'' Maggie apologized quickly.

''It's okay, you're allowed to sneeze Maggie,'' Evie shook her head. ''She's not used to all the noises around here yet,''

''I'm sorry precious,'' Maggie bent down to press a kiss to the baby's cheek. ''She was just drifting off too,''

''She'll drift off again soon, she's tired,''

''I'm gonna make you some tea, okay? I'll bring it over,''

''Thanks Maggie,''

Just as Evie said, Annabelle only took a few minutes to settle back down to sleep, curling up closer to Evie's body. The baby was wrapped in a warm knitted blanket but Evie still worried it was too cold for her, shifting closer to the fire to warm them both up.

A few moments later as Maggie was boiling water for their tea, Forrest appeared downstairs, searching for his wife and child. Evie eyes were closed as her head leaned back in the chair, Annabelle comfortably sleeping in her arms. Forrest was not a man who counted his blessings often, but when he could wake up to sights like this, he really began to be thankful. Another thing that had changed since Annabelle.

''Mornin','' Forrest whispered, a hand on Evie's shoulder.

''Good morning,'' Evie smiled, speaking quietly.

''Let me take her, you go have some breakfast,'' he offered, wanting to hold Annabelle in his arms himself.

''Forrest!''

Both Evie and Forrest looked toward the front porch where Maggie's cry had came from. Panic immediately rose in Evie, holding Annabelle closer and standing up carefully to wrap her arms around the baby. Forrest felt the back of his pants to double check his gun as he walked toward the door that Maggie was holding open, staring at something out on the porch.

It was a man, at least that's what they thought. Covered in tar that had been applied at a boiling temperature and then topped off with feathers, the man was barely moving on the wooden porch, a sign attached reading 'bootlegger'.

Evie slowly walked closer to the door, holding Annabelle closer with each step.

''Forrest?'' she called out as soft as she could. ''What's wrong?''

In response, Forrest held the door open again and gestured for her to step outside. He couldn't lie to her when it was right there, but he knew it was going to worry her. Rakes had gotten to the men working for him, slowing making his way to the Bondurant's.

Evie laid her eyes on the man and immediately felt her heart beating faster out of fear, knowing that this was far from over. Her family was in danger again, not that they had even been out of it. Forrest looked at Evie and saw her concern before she gently rocked the baby in her arms and walked back inside.

''What's goin' on?'' Howard asked, rushing down the stairs, seeing Evie with Annabelle in her arms.

''We gotta do something about Rakes,'' she told him quietly. ''Before one of you are next,''


	19. Chapter 19

Forrest wandered upstairs that afternoon, his heart sinking at the fact that he hadn't seen Evie since that morning when they discovered the body on the porch. All day he and Howard had been working with their allies to try and find whoever had sold out their cousin, who it was that tortured and deformed him that way. The anger that Forrest felt was beyond words.

Special Deputy Rakes was a monster, they all knew that by now, but the Bondurants were not afraid. Rakes was getting closer to them, drawing them out, making them desperate, and they weren't going to play his game.

Pushing open the bedroom door, Forrest spotted his wife in the corner of the room, swaying in the rocking chair that faced out at the evening sun and the busyness outside, Annabelle sleeping soundly in her arms. Evie's hand gently patted against Annabelle's side soothingly, reassuring the baby that they were in safe hands. But it was more reassuring the Evie that her daughter was protected.

When she turned to look at her husband approaching, Forrest could see the redness around her eyes. The worry, the fear.

"He almost killed you once Forrest," Evie shook her head, looking back down at Annabelle. "That was close enough, I don't _ever_ want to feel that again,"

"You ain't gonna," he assured, taking a seat on the edge of their bed to look her in the eyes. "That piece of shit is not gonna get that chance again,"

Evie felt Annabelle squirm in her arms at the sound of Forrest's voice, immediately cooing to settle her back to sleep.

"I told you he did horrible things," she reminded. "And that...it was so easy for that to have been you. If you were out there, if any of you were out there-"

"We ain't gonna let him get near us, you hear me? Not near me, not Howard or Jack and especially not you and Annabelle. Over my dead body would he hurt either of you,"

"That's what I'm afraid of Forrest," she admit. "I can't live without you,"

Forrest's heart ached at her words and he gulped down the lump he felt in his throat. It was one thing for Evie to be frightened of being hurt, but to constantly fear for his safety more than her own was exhausting and he could tell it was taking it's toll.

"I'm gonna be fine," he assured. "Ain't no one takin' me down,"

Annabelle had finally had enough of being rocked to sleep, instead beginning to whine and wail no matter what Evie did to soothe her. She knew what the baby wanted. Ever since she heard her father's voice, she wanted to be in his arms.

Forrest accepted the baby from Evie's grasp into his own, cradling his daughter as if she was made of glass. To Forrest, she was. She was just as fragile and pure. The baby made noises in his arms, moving around and stretching her arms to make herself comfortable. Forrest leaned down and pressed the softest of kisses to her forehead, watching as her eyes fluttered closed.

Evie's heart swelled at the sight.

Right here was everything Forrest ever needed. And it was everything that would always bring him home.

* * *

It was over two months later when Evie and Forrest laid their eyes on Special Deputy Rakes. They were in the town for a few hours, taking Annabelle to the doctor for a checkup and grabbing some essentials for the farm.

"Forrest," Evie whispered, Annabelle in her arms as Forrest carried a crate of groceries.

He followed Evie's glaring eyes over to a man standing across the street, his black hair slicked back without a wisp out of place. He was dressed in a fancy suit, smoking a cigarette and staring at the family.

Evie could read Forrest's body language perfectly and could tell just how hard he was trying to keep himself from marching over to the man. Forrest was a man of very few words, but his body could speak for itself. The glare that came from his eyes, the defensiveness that came from his stance, the hatred that was so obvious.

Each week Rakes was knocking down bootleggers, one by one, slowly and thoroughly.

"I don't want him looking at her," Evie spoke softly, holding their daughter closer and wrapping her arms around her little body.

"Don't worry about him," Forrest muttered, still staring over at the deputy.

Forrest wished he could end that man right now at that moment. His eyes were watching his family in a way that made his blood boil. Rakes was here to end the distribution of illegal substances and the production of alcohol, but he had long since crossed the line that made his goal personal.

"He's walking over," Evie warned. "Forrest, don't-"

Before Rakes could make it across the road, Forrest dropped the crate he was loading into the car and met him halfway. Rakes had a satisfied grin on his face, but Forrest held a completely blank expression, his body rigid and threatening.

Evie stood back over by the car with Annabelle in her arms, her little hat pulled over her head and keeping her face away from the sight of Rakes. Evie's body was shaking with anger just looking at the man.

"Do not take another step," Forrest warned gravely.

Rakes's lips pulled into a bigger grin, his hands slipping to the ends of his coat to pull tightly and stand tall.

"Mr. Bondurant," he greeted. "I wanted to give my congratulations on the birth of your child,"

In response, Forrest continued to stare at the man with hard, unrelenting eyes. Just facing Forrest's glare was enough to make most men fear him, but Rakes enjoyed the game that he was so sure they were playing.

"I see she's a little girl," he continued. "A beautiful daughter, a beautiful woman. Quite a life you've made for yourself Forrest,"

"You look their way one more time and I will rip your goddamn throat out," Forrest threatened lowly.

With one more smile, Rakes chuckled.

"I'll be seeing you Forrest," he nodded before turning.

Forrest kept his gaze on the Deputy until he was back on the other side of the street, strolling away as if not a thing had happened.

* * *

Evie walked downstairs with heavy eyes, a yawn escaping her lips as the sun began to set outside. Five months of putting Annabelle down for a nap and it still hadn't become any easier. The baby just wanted to be awake and in her parents' arms all day and night long. They spoiled her though, always happy to hold her as she slept against their chest, but parting with the infant when putting her in the cot was always a struggle.

"If anyone raises their voice or makes a commotion, then _they_ can try and get her back to sleep," she warned, taking a seat around the table.

Maggie chuckled as she sat down, placing another pitcher of lemonade in the middle of the table for the boys and Evie to drink. Forrest looked over to his wife lovingly, although his face showed no emotion, Evie could tell just how thankful he was for everything she did. Leaning over, Evie laid her head against his shoulder for a moment before pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Jack still out?" she asked, noticing his obvious absence.

Howard shook his head.

"Out doin' some deal with Cricket," he muttered. "Gonna get himself in a whole heap of shit,"

Evie groaned, rubbing her temples.

"No, none of that," she announced. "No business talk, no trouble talk,"

"Well that don't leave me with much else Evie," Howard scoffed.

Maggie smirked.

"I'm sure you'll think of somethin' proper to talk about,"

"You got a suggestion?" he asked with a grin.

Over the past few months, as much as Rake's threat loomed over them all and they witnessed more and more bootleggers killed and their stills blown up, there were positives. The biggest being Annabelle growing before their eyes, and the other was the blossoming romance between Maggie and Howard.

Evie had noticed it long ago, but Forrest refused to talk about it. He liked Maggie and he wanted his brother to be happy, but he wasn't about to go talking about their private lives. Even to his wife.

"Don't you think they'd be great together? They're so happy when they're around each other," Evie had admit.

"It's none of our business what they do," was always Forrest's response.

But now Forrest could see the admiration among the almost-couple in front of him, Evie couldn't help look at him with a knowing glance.

"I'm gonna take a walk in the fresh air," Evie suggested, standing and looking toward her husband.

"Mm, 'spose I could use some fresh air too," he grunted, moving to stand as well.

"Mind keeping an ear out for Annabelle?"

"Of course not," Maggie smiled. ''Enjoy your walk,"

Evie stepped out onto the porch and breathed in the cool evening air, feeling it blow against her skin, feeling Forrest's arm go around her waist. It had been so long since they had a moment together alone.

Weaving her arm into his, Evie walked alongside her husband off the porch and into the grassy paddocks of the farm.

"You doin' this just to leave them two alone back there?" Forrest asked.

"That and I wanted you all to myself for a while," she admit. "Remember when we used to lay out here and look for shooting stars?"

Forrest grinned slightly, nodding.

"Mm, you always thought you seen 'em," he recalled. "Most were moths,"

"Were not," she denied, folding her arms cheekily.

Forrest grabbed her hand and led them into the thicker grass, flattening out a patch in the middle and gesturing for them to lay together. Side by side, they felt just like teenagers again. Forrest's arm was spread out, Evie resting her head back against it, as they stared up at the sky.

So much had changed since the last time they did this.

"Y'know, when I came back, I told myself not to see you," Evie whispered after a few moments of silence. "Don't go near the Bondurant farm, don't go lookin' for Forrest, don't do that to him,"

Forrest turned slightly to look at her, his eyes watching for any signs of sadness on her face. Talking about leaving always upset her and reminded Forrest of a time he would rather forget. But she didn't look sad, instead she had a small smile on her lips.

"And on my first night back you found me," she continued. "And soon enough I was right back here again,"

Forrest remembered that night as if it were years ago. As soon as Evie came back into his life, those years apart almost vanished.

"This is your home," he reminded. "No where else,"

They remained in silence for a while longer, watching the stars all around the sky, enjoying the cool breeze that swept over them both. From the house they could hear the faint cries of their daughter that were being soothed by either Maggie or Howard.

"I never thought I'd be a mother," she admit.

"Never thought I'd be a father," Forrest echoed. "Never thought I'd want that. But I 'spose I just didn't want that with anyone but you,"

Evie grinned and rolled to lay on top of Forrest, pressing a kiss to his chest as she laid her head against him. His arms wound around her and held her close, suddenly forgetting about the stars in the sky.

It wasn't until they heard Annabelle's cries once again that they realized how long they had been out here.

"Mm, somethin' tells me we ain't gonna get much sleep tonight," Forrest murmured as Evie stood up.

"Well your daughter took on all your stubbornness," she quipped.

Forrest chuckled.

"That right?"


End file.
